Companies exporting liquified natural gas from Australia have made windfall profits close to $100 billion since 2022, when energy prices spiked because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Most of these profits are based on royalty-free gas and no Petroleum Resource Rent Tax was paid. At best, $20 billion in company tax was paid on this

Australians are being ripped off by gas export corporations.

In 2024–25, Australian governments provided $14.9 billion worth of spending and tax breaks to assist fossil fuel producers and major users, a 3% increase on 2023–24. Subsidies in the forward estimates have increased from $65 billion to a record $67 billion, a sum 14.2 times larger than the nation’s $4.75 billion disaster response fund.

Coal royalties are a tiny part of NSW Government revenue. Over the last decade, they have averaged only 2.4% of NSW Government revenue. Coal royalties do little to fund regional communities, schools, hospitals, teachers, and nurses.

The organisations charged with overseeing regional transition away from coal mining in NSW have a budget of $5.2 million across four organisations. By contrast, $27 million of public money was spent in 2022-23 by Coal Innovation NSW conducting and promoting research that greenwashes the coal industry, while a publicly subsidised coal industry research fund worth

The Future Gas Strategy, published in May 2024, sets out the Albanese Government’s plan for gas production and consumption in Australia between now and 2050.

According to the Australian Government’s Future Gas Strategy, gas is “critical” to the nation’s economy. In view of this, many Australians might be surprised to learn that a large amount of the country’s gas reserves are essentially being given away for free.

Woodside’s North West Shelf Extension has not identified sufficient gas supply for its export capacity. This is already resulting in applications to divert domestic gas to the export terminal. This will permanently destabilise WA’s domestic gas market.

Oil and gas extraction in South Australia employs just 833 people, 0.1% of SA jobs. Petroleum royalties make up 0.4% of the state budget. On oil and gas production worth $1.7 billion in 2021-22, the industry paid at most $99 million in federal tax, of which Santos paid zero. Despite this, the industry has significant

War in Ukraine has seen oil and gas export revenue out of Australia increase from $40 billion in 2020-21 to $107 billion in 2022-23. Lobby group forecasts of $17 billion in 2023-24 payments to government should be considered in this context.

According to the Australian Government’s Future Gas Strategy, gas is “critical” to the nation’s economy.

Royalty revenue from WA gas exports has halved in the past two years and now makes up just 1.5% of budget revenue.

Australia’s subsidies to fossil fuel producers and major users from all governments totalled $14.5 billion in 2023–24, increase of 31% on the $11.1 billion recorded in 2022–23.

The Fuel Tax Credits Scheme costs the Federal Budget nearly $10 billion per year and largely benefits iron ore and coal miners.

WA is a globally significant gas exporter, but gas is insignificant in the WA economy.

Submission to Senate Standing Committees on Economics inquiry into the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Accountability and Fairness) Bill 2023 [Provisions].

A submission made by The Australia Institute to the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure regarding the Glendell Mine Modification 5. The Modification should be rejected on both economic and environmental grounds. At the very least, it should be subject to a comprehensive economic assessment before a planning decision is reached. The Australia Institute

Offshore gas must not bypass genuine consultation with traditional owners or the wider community. Adequate consultation will always challenge the crumbling social license of fossil fuel operations – perhaps that is why there are proposals to “clarify and improve” consultation and approvals?

The Australia Institute made a submission to the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the NSW Planning system and the impacts of climate change on the environment and communities.

Public road and rail projects worth $7 billion have been sidelined due to Australia’s ‘clogged’ infrastructure pipeline. Meanwhile, the coal and gas industries have committed to $41 billion worth of new fossil fuel projects with similar construction and engineering inputs. Fossil fuel expansion will crowd out both road and rail projects and drive up the cost of the approximately $58 billion in renewable energy infrastructure projects also planned by the Federal Government.

The Australia Institute surveyed a sample of 1,535 Australians about their concerns regarding the impacts on human health from fossil fuel projects.

Despite the claims to the contrary by the Northern Territory government, development of the Beetaloo Basin’s gas resources will be of little benefit to Territorians. Modelling used by the NT government itself shows that the development of the Beetaloo Basin will not diversify the NT economy, aid the transition to net zero emissions, provide cheap

Gas development has few economic benefits beyond those that flow to the gas industry itself. The industry is a small employer, systematic non-payer of tax and crowds out other industries.

The Australia Institute’s annual Climate of the Nation report provides a comprehensive account of Australian attitudes towards climate change, its causes and impacts, and the integrity of Australia’s current and proposed climate solutions.

The Australia Institute welcomes the opportunity to make a submission on the Syngas and Power Generation, Stage 1 Commercial Development, NeuRizer Urea Project, which is currently open for public comment under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act Public Portal.

The NT LNG facility aims to produce up 20 million tonnes of LNG per year for export using gas fracked from the Northern Territory’s Beetaloo Basin.

This Bill appears primarily aimed at facilitating the Santos Barossa Project, its related Bayu-Undan carbon capture and storage (CCS) project and other fossil fuel projects off Australia’s northern shores. CCS is a technology that has failed for decades, a fact omitted by public agency submissions relating to this Bill.

The economic assessment of the Lake Vermont project heavily understates its costs and overstates its benefits. At the USA Environmental Protection Agency’s central social cost of carbon estimate, the cost of the direct emissions alone is $4.1 billion, greater than the estimated royalty revenue – $1.1 billion.

The Safeguard Mechanism now requires stronger action to cut pollution from gas projects including full abatement of reservoir emissions.

The Australia Institute made a submission on the Boggabri coal mine’s latest expansion proposal.