QGC

QGC Pty Limited
Type Private (subsidiary of BG Group)
Industry Energy
Headquarters Brisbane, Australia
Area served Worldwide
Key people Sir Robert Wilson KCMG
Chairman
Products Natural gas
Parent BG Group
Website www.qgc.com.au

QGC Pty Limited[1] (previously Queensland Gas Company) is part of the international BG Group which was created in 1996. QGC is one of the largest of several Australian coalbed methane companies developing methane reserves within the Bowen and Surat Basins of Queensland. The company has an estimated value of around A$13 billion. The BG Group chairman is currently Sir Robert Wilson KCMG who was appointed in January 2004. Catherine Tanna is managing director for Australian operations and leader of the management team representing QGC.

BG Group acquired Queensland Gas Company in November 2008.[2]

Contents

Operations

Coal seam gas extraction within the Surat and Bowen Basins of Queensland, Australia forms the basis of the company's main operations. QGC is constructing a coalbed methane liquefaction plant on Curtis Island off the coast of Gladstone in Central Queensland. The company is building a 540-kilometre (340 mi), 42-inch (1,070 mm) diameter pipeline from Miles to Gladstone, making it the longest buried pipeline of its type in Australia.[3] Work has been delayed after QGC was found to have contravened state environmental laws.[4]

About 20% of Queensland’s natural gas was produced by QGC in 2009.[5]

The company has a gas plant called Kenya, which is located near Tara, Queensland.[6] Three coal seam gas fields Lauren, Codie, and Kate are associated with the Kenya plant.[7] Leakage testing conducted in April and May 2010 found more than half of the wells in these gas fields were leaking extremely low level concentrations of methane.[7]

Environmental protests

In 2011, Bob Irwin the Australian environmentalist and founder of Australia Zoo, was arrested after protesting against QGC and refusing to obey an order from police to move on.[8] This was part of a long running protest by Tara protestors to disrupt the gas infrastructure being forced on them without their consent.[9]

ABC's Four Corners current affairs program did several investigative reports on what has been described as the great Australian land grab and the environmental dangers of coal seam gas.

References

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