Australia is the sixth largest producer of LNG and, if all the projects that are talked about at the moment get off the ground, it would move up to second behind Qatar.

Allens Arthur Robinson lawyer, Angus Jones who worked on the recent Gorogon LNG deal told ALBthat Australia is well placed to meet the growing LNG demand in Asia, particularly the emerging economies of China and India. China’s intent to secure long-term energy supplies was underlined this week with the signing of 20-year deal to secure 2.25m tonnes of LNG from ExxonMobil’s Gorgon LNG – valued at A$50bn.

“What is significant about this particular deal is that it indicates that China is back in the market and buying on competitive terms,” Jones told ALB. “They’re obviously a huge potential market for Australian LNG.”

Australia has traditionally supplied LNG to Japan and Korea but Jones said the developing markets of China and India are expected to soak up a lot of Australia’s new supply with the potential for some shipments to make their way to the West Coast of the US.

“India is actually developing pretty quickly and ExxonMobil have agreed to sell LNG to India from Gorgon,” Jones said. “India is clearly a current market but also expected to increase rapidly.”

He said the Gorgon deal is further evidence of Australia's reputation as a reliable LNG supplier . However, Jones said that LNG will be a growth area for Australian law firms, albeit a fairly niche area.
“In Queensland in particular, which hasn’t had any LNG exposure, and they’re looking at all these coal seam gas LNG plants there is certainly a need for LNG experience,” he said.