By Duncan Bennett

Australia has recently emerged as a world leader in liquefied natural gas (LNG) production, supplying foreign markets worldwide. Relatively inexpensive production, accessibility to Asian customers, global interest in cleaner energy and abundant resources are all contributors to the boon in LNG. But the growth in Australia’s energy market has affected another: labor. Such fervent development, both current and projected, has created a proportionately high demand for workers.

“The LNG industry in Australia is indeed going to become a boon to the experienced professionals,” said Volker Rathman, president of Collarini Energy Staffing Inc., leading petroleum recruitment and placement firm. “One project alone with, say, four trains could lead to 3,000 specialized jobs during the EPC [Engineering, Procurement and Construction] phase.”

To put Mr Rathmann’s statement in perspective, eventually there will be about 14 major LNG projects in Australia, each with liquefaction facilities of multiple, large-capacity trains.

Australia’s LNG industry began when the North West Shelf Venture discovered natural gas off the Western coast in the ’60s, while drilling for oil; and by 1989, the first shipment of LNG was headed to Japan, which is now, along with China, South Korea and Taiwan, one of Australia’s biggest LNG customers.

Offshore LNG Developments

There are currently about six major projects off the Western coast, involving international energy companies and sourcing from dozens of gas fields in several major basins. In addition to offshore operations, there are also upstream operations onshore Queensland, as well as shore-side downstream developments.

The Gorgon LNG project, operated by Chevron and expected to begin production in 2014, will use a three-train liquefaction plant capable of producing 15 million tons per annum (Mtpa) of LNG. In addition to the LNG facility, the Gorgon project is constructing a domestic gas facility projected to supply up to 300 terajoules per day of natural gas to Western Australia.

Another major project, Browse LNG, is a joint venture that includes Chevron, Shell, BP and Woodside, as the operator and main interest holder. At peak construction, the project will require about 6,000 offshore and 1,500 to 2,000 onshore workers. The Browse LNG project will include an offshore development, onshore LNG plant and export facilities, all connected by about 1,250 kilometers (777 miles) of pipeline. At 12 Mtpa, the three-train LNG liquefaction plant will be the third largest in Western Australia.

Gorgon and Browse are two of the largest offshore projects, but others are also substantial. Final investment decisions are being made in 2011 for Pluto (13 Mtpa), Wheatstone (8.6 Mtpa) and Prelude (3.5 Mtpa).

CSG-to-LNG

Less than a decade ago there was fear that Eastern Australia, due to declining natural gas reserves, would have to be supplied energy from Western Australia; however, in light of the massive amounts of coal seam gas (CSG) set for production from Queensland’s Surat and Bowen Basins, that bleak scenario has been reversed -- virtually overnight. Not only is CSG supplying Eastern Australia with energy, but it is being liquefied for export, making Australia the first country to produce and export LNG from CSG. In fact, if all the CSG-to-LNG projects were to go forward, about 32,000 direct and indirect workers would be needed to produce more than 50 Mtpa.

Of the numerous CSG-to-LNG projects currently under way in Queensland, the Australia Pacific LNG project stands out as the largest. Jointly led by ConocoPhilips and Origin Energy, the Pacific LNG project is expected to produce 18 Mtpa with a four-train liquefaction plant. About 450 kilometers (280 miles) of pipeline will connect the project’s more than 10,000 wells, sourced from fields in the Surat and Bowen Basins, to the LNG plant on Curtis Island, Gladstone. LNG export is expected to begin in 2015.

The Queensland Curtis LNG project, the third largest of the eight proposed projects, is operated by BG Group. It will require 1,162 kilometers (697 miles) of pipeline to transfer CSG from wells in the Surat Basin to Curtis Island, where its three-train, 12 Mtpa liquefaction plant will condense it for export. Developed in phases, the project is expecting its first shipment in 2013.

Because CSG-to-LNG is such a newcomer to the market, its projects are a bit more tentative. There are, however, major developments under way. Shell Australia is investigating a site on Curtis Island for a 16 Mtpa facility; Gladstone LNG, operated by Santos, is developing a 7.2 Mtpa facility, also on Curtis Island; and LNG Limited is developing a facility at Fisherman’s Landing with the potential to produce 3 Mtpa.

Growing LNG Workforce

Despite the growth that Australia’s emerging LNG industry has seen, it still has one seemingly insurmountable obstacle: a lack of skilled workers. In a recent special report, published in 2011, the International Energy Agency (IEA) affirmed Australia’s workforce problem: “Australia benefits from large gas resources and the only obstacle to it becoming a leading LNG exporter lies in the risk of construction delays and cost escalation due to workforce shortages.”

The labor shortage seems to be broad as well, with demand for positions in every area and at every stage of the development process.

“There are good prospects right now for career seekers with any type of background in commercializing gas and specifically LNG,” explained Rathmann, with Collarini Energy Staffing. “Professionals who are interested to get in on the LNG train would be well advised to not only look at the operating companies, but also the large EPC companies who are commonly contracted to engineer and build the plants.”

The demand for jobs in Australia, although projected to be enormous in the coming years, will move according to the developmental timelines of the various projects; so there may be peaks, during initial construction, followed by the moderate demand for maintenance and operation. Nonetheless, the Australian LNG job market remains robust now and looking forward for the next five years.

“LNG, and gas in general, will be a major part of the world’s energy supply chain for decades to come,” Rathmann said. “It is cleaner than oil, and it is plentiful in many regions of the globe.” While Australian LNG projects may come to an end, LNG projects worldwide are just ramping up.

“Any professional who still has years left in the career will probably be faced with an LNG opportunity at some point in time,” Rathmann concluded. “To be able to add experience gained on a world-class project can only benefit the career-minded professional.”