Australia Pacific LNG launches Gladstone Project Centre

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Australia Pacific LNG’s Gladstone project centre was officially opened today by Queensland Premier, the Hon. Anna Bligh.

The Premier was joined by Origin Managing Director Grant King and ConocoPhillips President and Chief Operating Officer John Carrig at the official opening of the centre.

The centre has a dual purpose, as an office for Project employees, as well as being an education centre for the Gladstone section of the Australia Pacific LNG project.

The coal seam natural gas (CSG) to liquefied natural gas (LNG) project is a 50:50 joint venture between Australian-based Origin and US oil and gas producer ConocoPhillips. The project will stretch from the gas fields in the Surat and Bowen Basins, along a 450 kilometre pipeline, to an LNG facility on Curtis Island off Gladstone.

Premier Anna Bligh said the Australia Pacific LNG project was at the forefront of a major new industry for Queensland.

“Our Government is serious about facilitating the LNG industry and realising the thousands of jobs it offers in Gladstone and right throughout the Surat Basin,” she said.

“This centre will be a place for employees but also a place for the public to learn more about what this industry has to offer the region.

“I am delighted to see our LNG industry becoming a reality. This sustainable new industry has a lot to offer Queensland and I am excited for the future of LNG in this State.”

Mr Carrig welcomed the support of the Premier to the CSG to LNG industry in Queensland.

“The support of government at all levels will be important for this industry to reach its full potential here in Australia,” Mr Carrig said.

“We are looking forward to a long relationship with the State Government, Local Government and, most importantly, those of you who live here, our community.

“This office for us symbolises our commitment to being here for the long run, and we look forward to working with the Federal government to assess the RSPT and find a solution that supports development of this important gas resource,” he said.

Mr King said the project centre was a good example of the co-operation and synergies of the joint venture between Origin and ConocoPhillips which has been brought to the project.

“Origin has a long history of being an integral part of the communities in which it operates here in Queensland.

“This new centre provides more than just a project office here in Gladstone, it provides an information centre on the Australia Pacific LNG project and the part it plays in the coal seam gas to liquefied natural gas industry here in Queensland,” Mr King said.

“The Australia Pacific LNG project has the potential to significantly benefit Gladstone, Queensland and Australia both in terms of investment and through the creation of direct and indirect jobs,” he said.

For further information please contact:

Media
Paul Turner
Ph: +61 7 3867 0676
Mobile: +61 429 078 331

Investors
Angus Guthrie
Origin Energy
Ph: +61 2 8345 5558
Mobile: +61 417 864 255

About Australia Pacific LNG
Australia Pacific LNG is a 50:50 joint venture between Origin Energy and ConocoPhillips which combines Origin’s 13 and ConocoPhillips’ 25 years of CSG experience, as well as ConocoPhillips’ 40 years experience in operating and developing LNG facilities. Australia Pacific LNG is already producing almost 40 per cent of Australia’s total CSG production to meet domestic market requirements. Australia Pacific LNG holds the largest CSG reserves in Australia. APLNG’s project stretches from the Surat and Bowen Basins along a 450km pipeline to a site at Laird Point on Curtis Island off Gladstone. Origin is Australia’s largest integrated energy company and ConocoPhillips is a leader in the development of LNG projects internationally including the existing plant in Darwin, Australia. For more information: www.aplng.com.au