More Confidence Needed in NSW's CSG Regulation

Santos will commit to developing its New South Wales coal seam resource only after the company get more confident about state’s regulatory framework, chief executive David Knox said.

Knox warned that NSW, which produces just 5 per cent of its gas requirements, could face a shortfall if it does not act soon to develop its own gas projects, Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported.

The chief executive said that confidence in the regulatory framework for CSG, which has been changed several times over the past few years, is still lacking.

 “We need to really sense that the NSW government is in themselves confident that they’ve got the framework, that it’s going to work and they are prepared to stand behind it and move forward,” Knox told AFR on Wednesday.

Santos is facing opposition from the local community in the state, especially to its Narrabri CSG project in the Pilliga Forest in north-central NSW.

The challenge is to get the gas out of the ground and bring it to the market, Knox said.