DILI, 08 march 2024 (TATOLI) – The Prime Minister, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, and the CEO of the Woodside Energy, Meg O’Neill, held a meeting on march 6, 2024, in Melbourne, Australia, to discuss issues related to the development process of the Greater Sunrise project.
During the meeting, Gusmão and O’Neill discussed the new concept study for the development of the Greater Sunrise project, as well as the negotiation process with Australia on the resource development concept.
The Head of Government reiterated Timor-Leste’s position on establishing a supply base and refinery on the South Coast, to connect to the Greater Sunrise pipeline, with a view to developing a national petroleum industry, in order to ensure fair benefits for Timor-Leste in the exploitation of mineral resources.
Gusmão pointed out that, Timor-Leste’s fight for the permanent delimitation of maritime boundaries with Australia has been concluded, and the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Francisco da Costa Monteiro, and his team are working hard to coordinate with Woodside and other parties involved to move this process forward.
Meg O’Neill expressed her thanks to the Government of Timor-Leste for their continued confidence in working together to develop Greater Sunrise.
Last year, the Sunrise Joint Venture, comprising TIMOR GAP (56.56%), Woodside Energy (33.44%), and Osaka Gas (10.00%), agreed to undertake the concept selection study to develop the Greater Sunrise gas fields situated between Timor-Leste and Australia, with a “strong focus” on piping the oil and gas to be processed in onshore Timor-Leste.
The study will incorporate and update previous work by utilizing the latest technologies and cost estimates while also considering the socio-economic, capacity building, safety, environmental, strategic, and security benefits of the various options. The studies will include an evaluation of which option provides the most meaningful benefit for the people of Timor-Leste.
The Sunrise development, located approximately 450 km northwest of Darwin and 150 km south of Timor-Leste, comprises the Sunrise and Troubadour gas and condensate fields. The Sunrise field is estimated to contain 5.13 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas and 226 million barrels of condensate (oil), which could give Timor-Leste US$50 billion in revenues.
On march 6, 2018, Australia and Timor-Leste signed the Treaty establishing Maritime Boundaries between the two countries in the Timor Sea to resolve a long-running dispute over the maritime border and set a deal on how to share revenue from the offshore Greater Sunrise gas field.
Timor-Leste will receive 80% of the revenue if the gas is developed in Australia, or 70% if the gas is piped to be processed in Timor-Leste.
Journalist: Jose Belarmino de Sa
Editor: Filomeno Martins
