Chevron gets Australian LNG agreement

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SAN RAMON, Calif., Sept. 19 (UPI) -- Japanese energy company Kyushu Electric Power Co. signed a sales deal for the delivery of liquefied natural gas from Australia, supermajor Chevron announced.

Chevron, along with its partners working at the Wheatstone project in Western Australia, announced the signing of a 20-year sale and purchase agreement with KEPCO. The deal includes the delivery of around 700,000 tons of LNG per year from Wheatstone.

The supermajor said it expects the Wheatstone project to become one of Australia's largest gas projects. The foundation phase envisions total production capacity of around 8.9 million tons of LNG per year.

Melody Meyer, president of Chevron's exploration company working in the Asia Pacific region, said in a statement that the sales agreement was a boost for investment decisions at Wheatstone.

"We are working with all levels of the Australian government and anticipate timely project approvals, which will enable a final investment decision to be made," she said.

More decisions are expected by the end of the year, Chevron said.

Chevron announced in 2009 it was cutting capital and exploratory spending 5 percent to $21.6 billion for 2010.

For last year, Chevron said it would target opportunities in LNG at the Gorgon and Wheatstone projects in Australia.