Santos, Shell, Woodside Signal Support for Australian Domestic Gas Reservation

Bloomberg–Australia’s energy sector largely supports the introduction of a policy that would require producers to reserve a portion of gas for domestic consumption, as the nation seeks to balance a looming local supply crunch with lucrative exports.

Santos Ltd., Shell Plc and Woodside Energy Group Ltd. were among those who made a submission to the Australian government’s Gas Market Review. Stakeholders largely called for a domestic gas reservation policy to be paired with incentives for supply and infrastructure investment, the government said.

Australia is one of the world’s biggest exporters of liquefied natural gas, shipping about a fifth of global volumes to mainly Asian buyers. However, LNG producers — which earned about A$67 billion ($44 billion) from the trade in the year through June 2025 — have been criticized for prioritizing more lucrative exports over domestic supply, raising fears of a shortfall in the southeastern population centers.