Woodside's chief executive is calling for urgent reform of Australia's offshore approvals process after the Federal Court threatened to delay a $16 billion offshore gas project because an Indigenous woman wasn't adequately consulted.
The court last month sided with Mardudhunera woman Raelene Cooper, who had argued that seismic testing for the Scarborough gas project 375km off the coast of Western Australia could harm her songline, including whales and turtles.
The court ruled on September 28 that the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) wrongly approved the permit before Woodside had consulted with Murujuga traditional custodians on seismic testing work, a precursor to drilling.
Woodside chief executive Meg O'Neill said the decision hadn't impacted Woodside's target for first LNG cargo from Scarborough in 2026, but uncertainty over approvals had the potential to add cost and delays to Australian offshore gas activities.
"Such uncertainty threatens the delivery of much-needed new supplies to the Western Australian domestic market, as well as undermining the confidence of our regional trading partners," Ms O'Neill said.
LNG Japan in August took a 10 per cent stake in the joint venture, which Ms O'Neill said highlighted its importance to regional energy security.
Woodside said that "engagement continues" with NOPSEMA over the environmental plan following the court decision, without giving further details.
The Scarborough project is 46 per cent complete, with fabrication of a massive floating production unit progressing.
Woodside also announced on Wednesday that it expects to hit the midrange of production guidance for 2023 and its capital expenditure might be below previous forecasts.
Australia's biggest oil and gas explorer said it expects to produce 183 million to 188 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe) in 2023, after lifting its third-quarter production by eight per cent to 47.8 million barrels.
Its previous guidance was for full-year production of 180 million to 190 MMboe.
Ms O'Neill said that the quarter-on-quarter lift in production was underpinned by strong operating results at its Pluto LNG plant in WA, which achieved 99.9 per cent reliability.
Woodside also narrowed its forecast for capital expenditure to $5.7 billion to $6 billion, from $6 billion to $6.5 billion.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Gordon Ramsay said the quarterly update was overall a solid result and the company's biggest near-term risk was further regulatory delays to its Scarborough project.
