In a decarbonising world, successful energy projects will need to be low-cost and low-carbon.
The Scarborough reservoir, located 375 kilometres off Western Australia’s north coast, is a
resource well-suited to our times.
Woodside is preparing to progress this natural gas development, which can deliver opportunities to
this state and play a role in decarbonisation globally.
The Scarborough gas contains almost no carbon dioxide and would be processed through a highly
efficient facility at our Pluto LNG plant in Karratha.
The resulting energy would produce less than half the CO2 emissions per megawatt-hour of
energy produced from coal, making it one of the lowest carbon sources of LNG globally that can be
delivered to our north Asian customers.
Our plans are aligned with the goal of net zero by 2050 – a goal that is shared by Woodside and Western Australia.
Woodside understands the imperative to act to address climate change and we are playing our
part. We know our community and our investors expect this.
Our strategy is three-pronged.
First, we are reducing and offsetting emissions from our operations to meet our targets of a 15%
reduction in our net Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2025 and 30% by 2030 on our pathway to net zero by 2050.
Second, we are providing natural gas to support customers meeting their net zero goals. In the decades ahead, natural gas will play a crucial role in displacing coal in Asian markets, supporting decarbonisation and improving air quality.
And third, we are progressing new energy technologies, like hydrogen, ammonia and renewables,
that can help accelerate the transition to a lower carbon future.
We’ll hear from critics the time for natural gas has passed, but this ignores the fact carbon-neutral
energies are not yet ready to meet the world’s energy needs. This is particularly apparent in Woodside’s target markets in Asia.
While we in Western Australia already enjoy the benefits of gas-fired power, hundreds of millions of people in Asia still rely on more carbon-intensive fuels, or lack access to modern essentials like refrigeration and heating.
The Scarborough development can provide enough energy to power the homes in ten cities like Perth for more than thirty years.
Woodside is targeting a final investment decision later this year on Scarborough and Pluto Train 2,
which can be transformative for our company and help Western Australia to remain a global energy powerhouse.
It’s our priority to ensure the benefits are shared amongst Western Australians and used to fund
the next steps in our energy transition.
We are already working with a range of local suppliers to prepare for Scarborough, with activity to
increase as the project progresses, delivering opportunities and employment in both construction and operations. In addition to supplying Asian customers, this project will provide gas to Western Australian homes and businesses.
The economic benefits to Western Australia are significant and the energy that is produced can play an important role globally.
While the world talks about net zero, it is only achievable if companies like Woodside use our expertise and resources to drive the changes that are needed for a lower-carbon future.
That’s our goal as we work alongside the State Government to deliver the Scarborough project,
unlocking value for this state, supporting our customers’ decarbonisation goals and positioning
Woodside to progress lower-carbon energy solutions.
