Australian oil and gas producers boasted higher output in the quarter preceding the second global energy shock in four years. Metals producers in the country are also accelerating mining activities as the government places emphasis on critical minerals supply.
Australian Firms Boost Supply
Santos has executed a binding term sheet with the South Australian Government for the long-term supply of natural gas to support the transformation of the Whyalla Steelworks into a low-emissions green iron facility, subject to certain conditions.
The transaction features the supply of 20 PJ of gas per year from 2030, for a 10-year term for a total of 200 PJ of gas.
The planned first gas delivery on 1 March 2030 would coincide with the expiry of Santos’ Horizon contract with the GLNG joint venture.
This agreement will support the long-term future of the Moomba Central Area of the Cooper Basin in South Australia, operated by Santos, the Australian company said.
“We’ve been a gas supplier to Whyalla for many years and we are pleased to be working with the South Australian government on its green steel vision for a future made in Australia,” said Kevin Gallagher, Santos Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Separately, Santos and its joint venture partner Beach Energy have taken a final investment decision (FID) to proceed with the Moomba Central Optimisation (MCO) project in the Cooper Basin, South Australia.
Santos will invest AUS$357 million in the project which is planned to be delivered over three years.
The MCO project will replace seven ageing gas-driven compressor stations with one electric-driven compressor station that will debottleneck upstream infrastructure and unlock future production growth from the Cooper Basin Central Fields. At the Moomba Gas Plant, new inlet compression and additional power generation capacity will be installed to receive gas and power the upstream satellite.
The Central Fields contain more than half of the remaining 2P reserves in the Cooper Basin and have higher productivity wells. The MCO project is designed to unlock the full productivity of the Central Fields, with an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) greater than 25 percent expected from Central Fields full-field development that the MCO project is expected to enable.
“The Cooper Basin has been a cornerstone of Australia’s gas supply for more than 60 years. The MCO project will unlock significant value by modernising our infrastructure and extending the productive life of this world-class resource,” Santos’ Gallagher said.
In 2025, Santos’ base oil and gas business performed exceptionally well with production maintained and the best unit production costs in a decade, achieved through continued commitment to the disciplined low-cost operating model, the company said.
“We achieved our 2030 emissions reduction target of 30 per cent, five years early,” Gallagher commented.
“The Moomba CCS phase 1 project, one of the lowest cost CCS projects in the world, was the centrepiece of this success providing real emissions reduction and underscores the credibility of Santos’ decarbonisation pathway.”
Woodside Energy, for its part, reported record production of 198.8 million barrels of oil equivalent, or 545,000 boe/day, for the full year 2025, underpinned by outstanding production performance at Sangomar, Senegal’s first oil project, producing at nameplate capacity for most of the year, and world-class reliability at the operated Pluto LNG and NWS Project assets in Australia.
Record output partially offset lower realized oil and gas prices for Woodside in 2025, the Australian company said.
Australia Keeps Close Eye on Fuel Market amid Middle East War
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is keeping a close eye on the domestic petrol market amid the Middle East conflict.
“While these international costs are largely outside the control of local petrol retailers, we remind retailers that making false or misleading statements to consumers about the reasons of price increases would be in breach of the Australian Consumer Law,” Commissioner Anna Brakey said.
ACCC also urgently met with fuel market participants to seek more detailed explanations for recent pricing conduct during the Middle Eastern crisis, amid consumer concerns about sudden petrol and diesel price spikes and distribution issues in regional and rural Australia.
The ACCC also began weekly market updates to provide increased transparency to consumers and enhanced scrutiny of retailers’ behaviour.
South Australia Becomes World’s Fourth Most Attractive Mining Destination
The latest Annual Survey of Mining Companies from the Fraser Institute showed at the end of February that South Australia ranks fourth globally for investment attractiveness and first for mineral potential.
The survey captures investor sentiment from mining and exploration companies around the world and provides a snapshot of how jurisdictions are perceived on a range of policy, regulation, and overall investment attractiveness.
Western Australia remains Australia’s flagship mining jurisdiction and overturns a terrible result from last year’s 17th place, to place at 6th in the latest survey. Queensland has returned to 13th place, after dropping down to 39th last year.
“The survey is a snapshot in time. We have seen in previous years how quickly rankings can change,” said Warren Pearce, CEO of the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC).
“For AMEC members, the Survey reinforces the need for governments across Australia to remain focused on improving regulatory efficiency, reducing duplication and ensuring land access frameworks operate effectively while respecting environmental and cultural heritage obligations,” Pearce noted.
Australia Joins G7 Critical Minerals Alliance
In recent weeks, Australia has also joined the G7 Critical Minerals Production Alliance, Australia and Canada said in a joint statement after Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney on a visit to Canberra.
The leaders noted Australia and Canada’s combined strengths as major global critical minerals producers and committed to working more purposefully in partnership to advance their mutual interests and promote thriving, dynamic global critical minerals supply chains.
They also pledged to strengthen and deepen collaboration in critical minerals investments and standards, and between Australia’s Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve and Canada’s Critical Minerals Sovereign Fund.
Separately, the Australian Government has pledged AUS$53 million in grants to help create a critical metal refining industry by backing a landmark new research centre.
Under the Cooperative Research Centres (CRC) program, the Critical Metals for Critical Industries (CMCI) CRC has been awarded AUS$53 million to drive the development and commercialisation of new critical minerals refining technologies.
“Securing the future of critical minerals for our critical industries is how we realise the economic, social and environmental benefits of a Future Made in Australia, with more solar panels, wind turbines and defence equipment produced onshore,” said Tim Ayres, Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science.
Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Madeleine King, commented,
“Australia is at the forefront of global efforts to diversify supply chains for critical minerals and rare earths, and the materials the world will increasingly need for clean energy, defence and medical technology.”
Australia’s Renewables Break New Records
More renewable electricity was switched on in Australia in the final quarter of 2025 than in any other quarter on record, according to the Clean Energy Council’s (CEC) latest quarterly investment report from the end of February.
Nine large-scale wind and solar projects were commissioned during Q4 2025, delivering 2.1 gigawatts (GW) of new generation capacity, the CEC’s Quarterly Investment Report: Large-scale renewable generation and storage (Q4 2025) found.
The generation capacity that came online in the last quarter of 2025 is equivalent to powering at least 1.4 million Australian homes, or powering Greater Brisbane approximately 1.5 times. The strong result broke the previous quarterly record of 1.3 GW switched on in the third quarter of 2021.
“Combined with world-leading uptake of rooftop solar and home batteries, large-scale renewable projects are already making our energy system more reliable and resilient,” Clean Energy Council CEO, Jackie Trad, said.
“We are now approaching half of our electricity consistently being supplied from renewables, and the construction pipeline is further solidifying this shift.”
