Exxon gives Woodside control of the Bass Strait oil and gas production to increase supply and help to assuage the fears of supply to the east coast of Australia.

Woodside, an Australian energy giant, has taken the operatorship of the assets in Bass Strait as far as oil and gases are concerned, which had been previously run by Exxon. The portfolio is held on a 50:50 basis and deals with essential production and processing activities with the two companies in partnership.

Woodside anticipates that the transfer will result in synergistic savings of more than $60 million and is hoping to grow natural gas output to keep up with the upsurge in domestic consumption. The Bass Strait resources produce about 40 percent of the gas that is needed on the east coast of Australia at this moment.

This decision is because of the mounting concern that there will be a shortage of gas. Regulatory In June, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission sounded the alarm that supplies in 2025 and 2026 might not be sufficient, and much more gas is contracted on shorter-term contracts which can be more of a risk to the businesses requiring long-term certainty.

The Albanese government is currently deliberating on establishing a national gas reserve as a precautionary measure against eventual shortages that arise at peak demand times.

Australia has the oldest offshore oil and gas field, named Bass Strait and started production in 1969, and so far it has produced more than 11 trillion cubic feet of gas and 5 billion barrels of crude oil. And given its essentiality to the supplying states of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and the rest of the states the refurbished operatorship determines the strategic needs of ensuring Australian energy security through constant oil and gas flows.