Waiting for no one

FIFTEEN thousand million dollars. That is the responsibility weighing on Colin Beckett’s shoulders, with the cost of the Gorgon gas project under review.
$15 billion is believed to be in the ballpark — and Beckett is the man charged with bringing it to fruition.

If it proceeds, Gorgon will be the most expensive development ever attempted in Australia.

It will produce 10 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas a year — almost as much as the North West Shelf — and add more than $2.5 billion a year to Australia’s export earnings.

But in an industry where costs are rising there are no guarantees.

The project appeared to be steaming towards a development decision last year but joint venture partners Chevron, Shell and ExxonMobil have taken the foot of the accelerator for another look.

Herald Sun