• Wednesday, 16 May, 2012

WA digs heels in over regulator

Flagged up: Australian plans for a national regulator

Greg Wood

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Josh Lewis , Josh Lewis , Josh Lewis

 09 September 2010 09:49 GMT

The Australian government faces one of its first hurdles after its re-election as Western Australia voiced its objection to plans for a national offshore petroleum regulator.

Last month the federal government promised to set up a single national regulator for the oil and gas industry if it was returned to power in the 21 August general election.

At the time, federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson said a national regulator would remove duplication, speed up decision-making and address a “resistance to change” among the states and territories.

Ferguson said all the states and territories backed the plan with the exception of WA and today West Australian Mines & Petroleum Minister, Norman Moore, reiterated the state's stance.

“WA has agreed with the majority of recommendations of a federal productivity commission review into removing the regulatory burden on upstream petroleum operations,” Moore told the Petroleum & Geothermal Open Day in Perth.

“A sticking point for us has been the suggestion that we have a national offshore petroleum regulator.”

Moore said a national regulator would remove the state from the approvals process concerning major offshore oil and gas projects in Commonwealth waters.

“These projects can create enormous opportunities for the state and the nation and we want to have a role in their development, in particular we have to be involved where there are facilities located onshore and on state lands,” he added.

“Following the recent federal election it might be some time before this national offshore petroleum regulator issue is resolved, but let me indicate to you that we have no intention of handing over our responsibilities in respect to offshore petroleum without a serious fight.”

The minister's comments were backed by the Department of Mining & Petroleum which said the state was in a better capacity to solve the problems of industry than setting up a completely new environment that it would have to work through.

“Yes, we’ve got problems, but turning everything upside down and taking it a different way may not provide the solutions that we would like to see,” the department’s deputy director general approvals, Tim Griffin, said.

“It’s going to take years to set up and years to settle down and I dare say we’ll have the same sort of issues we’ve got now,” he added.

Under the current system, all approvals for offshore oil and gas projects are issued through a process in which the federal and state governments share decision making. However major projects often extend into areas which are administered by the state.

If Western Australia invokes its constitutional powers and refuses to give up authority over these areas, the national regulator would have responsibility for a project’s offshore activity, but the state would administer the same project’s activities in state waters and onshore.

Last month Ferguson said he would continue to hold discussions with the West Australian government and hoped to have the issue finalised by Christmas.

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