For further information on the Oil and Gas Equipment industry in Australia, please contact Commercial Specialist John Kanawati, U.S. Commercial Service Sydney on Tel: (+61-2) 9373-9207, Fax: (+61-2) 9221-0573, Email: John.Kanawati@N0SPAM.mail.doc.gov

Overview

Australia continues to be a good market for U.S. oil and gas equipment suppliers and service providers. Increasing demand for petroleum products (particularly LNG) is fuelling the exploration, development and production of both existing and new fields across Australia. The increasing demand is coming from the growing energy consumption needs of regional importers such as Japan, Korea, and China. Local power generators are also facing some pressure to use gas as a cleaner alternative to burning coal.

Australia is a net consumer of oil and gas equipment. Companies are importing much of the technology used in upstream and downstream projects. Estimates of the annual market for this kind of equipment are around USD2.5 billion. The Industry highly regards U.S suppliers given their reputation for product quality, safety, and reliability. Industry sources indicate that the U.S. is the major supplier of oil and gas equipment, including pumps, valves, and gauges. Other key suppliers are the U.K., Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Japan. China and India’s share of the import market within this sector is still relatively small but growing.

Much of the interest in Australia centers on the offshore gas industry. Companies used to confine projects to coastal shelves, but now they are extending their exploration and development into the deeper water around Australia. Companies are more commonly using technologies such as sub-sea connections, unmanned platforms, and floating, production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) systems. Companies are also likely to show a growing interest in technologies that can prolong the life of wells or assist in the recovery of oil from older wells.

The coal seam methane industry located on the eastern coast of Australia is another fast growing segment of the industry – having grown from around 20 terajoules (TJ)/day in 2000 to current production of around 150 TJ/day. The industry expects growth to continue with forecast of an industry producing more than 300 TJ/day in 2010.

Best Products/Services

• Deepwater exploration and production technology
• Coal seam methane production equipment
• Drilling related equipment
• High tech process control and analyzing equipment
• Technology that reduces labor or increases operational safety

Opportunities

Companies are investing about USD7 billion in existing oil and gas projects and planning/considering another USD40 billion worth of projects.

Onshore, Santos is investigating a USD5.6 billion LNG project at Gladstone in Queensland based on coal seam methane reserves. In Western Australia, the government has given approval to two very large projects - Woodside’s USD8 billion LNG processing facility on the Burrup Peninsula, and Chevron’s USD12 billion Gorgon gas project, Australia’s largest resource development.

Resources

Trade Events:

APPEA Conference & Exhibition
Date: April 6 – 9, 2008
Location: Perth, Western Australia
http://www.appea2008.com.au/

South East Asia Offshore Conference
Date: July 16 – 18, 2008
Location: Holiday Inn Esplanade, Darwin, NT
http://www.seaaoc.com

AOG 2009 / Australasian Oil & Gas
Date: February 17 – 19, 2009
Location: Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre, Western Australia
http://www.imexmgt.com/shows/aog2009

Associations/Agencies:

Australia Institute of Energy – http://www.aie.org.au/
Australian Petroleum Co-operative Research Centre - http://www.apcrc.com.au/
Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association - http://www.appea.com.au/
Australian Pipeline Industry Association - http://www.apia.net.au/
Geosciences Australia - http://www.ga.gov.au/