Not content with a decade’s worth of guaranteed gas purchases from Santos, SA Premier Peter Malinauskas is removing the risk of the $500m pipeline upgrade. What’s the scam?
The scam is the SA Government’s largesse of prepaying for the gas, which allows Santos to invest in the Moomba Central Optimisation pipeline, virtually guaranteeing Santos shareholders risk-free returns of up to 25%.
That’s Santos’ own assessment of the deal, where the SA Government is locking in a decade of gas offtake from the Central Fields project in the Cooper Basin.
But wait, there is more, Santos also brags the development lowers scope 1 emissions “by over 40,000 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per year”. According to Tim Buckley of Climate Energy Finance, “That’s a big number, until one compares it to Santos’ 2025 Scope 1 and 2 Net emissions of 3,810,000 tonnes” – or 1.04%.
Whyalla rescue, Santos gift. A multi-billion-fossil-subsidy-fest in the pipeline?
Kim Wingerei is a businessman turned writer and commentator. He is passionate about free speech, human rights, democracy and the politics of change. Originally from Norway, Kim has lived in Australia for 30 years. Author of ‘Why Democracy is Broken – A Blueprint for Change’.