Opinion: No reason for gas shortage

This article written by DomGas Alliance spokesperson Mia Davies was published in The Western Australian on 24 December 2025.

WA has gas in abundance, yet we are hurtling towards a shortage big enough to threaten our own energy security, industry and manufacturing. That’s what the numbers in this year’s annual Gas Statement of Opportunities (GSOO) published by the Australian Energy Market Operator foreshadow.

In a state built on energy, that is a failure of policy, not geology. 

In June 2023, a parliamentary inquiry chaired by Peter Tinley was launched to examine whether WA’s domestic gas industry was delivering on the State’s reservation policy.

It was a deep-dive into a pretty simple policy that can be summed up in three lines - LNG producers are obliged to reserve the equivalent of 15 percent of their exports for the domestic market, build the infrastructure to put it in the pipeline, and market the gas in good faith (fair price and contract terms, when the market needs it).

In essence, LNG producers can only get a green light to export our gas if some of it stays here in WA to build and grow industry, jobs and maintain energy security for our State.

Despite this, WA gas prices have more than doubled in the last five years and the latest forecast from the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) shows WA is set to experience shortages of supply as soon as 2028.

Left unchecked, we’ll be joining our east coast cousins who are struggling to keep the lights on and businesses operating.

Domestic gas is the quiet workhorse of our economy. It underpins mining and minerals processing, supports fertiliser and food production and underwrites jobs across the state. More than 400,000 Western Australians rely on affordable, reliable domestic gas for their livelihoods.

Domestic gas also plays a critical role in keeping WA’s electricity system reliable as the State transitions away from coal-fired power. The planned retirement of WA’s ageing coal plants depends on gas to firm renewables and maintain system security.

Without adequate domestic gas supply, those retirements will be delayed, forcing the life extension of some of the State’s highest-emitting assets. The irony is stark. Instead of accelerating decarbonisation, gas shortages risk locking in coal for longer.

So how did we get to this point?

 It’s not that there’s a lack of gas in the ground - the problem is a system failing to deliver on the intent of the policy.

The social contract at the heart of the Domestic Gas Reservation Policy is not being met.

This failure is not confined to a single project or a single company, but Woodside’s Pluto project demonstrates where we’re missing the mark. Less than 3 per cent of their obligation has been delivered to date meaning WA households and industries have not received what they were promised.

Unlike the east coast where they are retrofitting a domestic reservation policy, the WA State Government has levers to pull to get things back on track.

Premier Roger Cook has stated it plainly - it's our gas - and that means Western Australians have every right to demand producers honour both the letter and the spirit of their domestic gas commitments.

The good news is we can avert the crisis if everyone plays their part.

In the short term - resolving Woodside’s Pluto project obligations should be priority for the company and the State Government.

Second, we need to shine a light on a market that has historically been shrouded in secrecy.

The WA Domestic Gas Statement was created to do this in the wake of the Parliamentary Inquiry but it relies on producers volunteering data, and in its current form it’s about as useful as a screen door on a submarine.

To their credit, a majority of producers supply the information required. The outlier this year was Woodside who refused to provide data in the same format as everyone else, effectively giving the State Government, WA gas users and the WA community the two fingered salute. This decision makes the document meaningless and has undermined the Government’s attempt to improve transparency in the market.

As we look at these policy pieces, the reality is we need new gas coming into the system to meet demand. The current rules for retention leases covering gas reserves that have been proved up but not brought to market need tightening up. ‘Use it or lose it’ must become the mantra for Government and Departments responsible for granting these leases.

The 2025 Gas Statement of Opportunities should be a sharp reminder that a policy doesn’t guarantee an affordable, secure supply of domestic gas. It provides a foundation to work from and that work is now critically urgent.

We need Government and industry working together to avert an energy crisis that will cost jobs and weaken our economy.  WA's future depends on it.