Australia’s natural gas infrastructure company APA Group will invest $460 million to build a new pipeline in Western Australia.
The new 580km, 12-inch pipeline will connect emerging gas fields in the Perth Basin to Goldfields region, forming an interconnected Western Australia Gas Grid, a statement said.
The Northern Goldfields Interconnect will connect to the Goldfields Gas Pipeline (GGP), which will connect to APA’s Eastern Goldfields network to create an interconnected gas pipeline system covering 2,690km from north to south and west to east.
GGP is a 1,378km transmission by delivering natural gas from Carnarvon Basin producers to customers along the length of the pipeline, primarily for use in electricity generation facilities associated with mining and minerals processing.
NGI will double the additional capacity to the Goldfields region compared with spending the same amount to expand the existing GGP. There is further scope for expansion depending on capacity.
The Northern Goldfields Interconnect will create 500 jobs in construction stage, and will stimulate economic development in the mid-west region, premier Mark McGowan said in a statement. The new pipeline is scheduled to be operational in mid-2022.
Energy expert George Varma of Pinsent Masons, the firm behind Out-Law, said: “This is a substantial investment and the development aligns with the government’s aim to boost the Australian economy through a ‘gas-led recovery plan’. This project will undoubtedly assist with stimulating local economic activity and hopefully contribute to the overall reduction in electricity prices.”
