Chevron LNG workers extend talks, delay strike deadline
Contract talks between Chevron and labour unions in Australia will continue another day, prompting workers at two liquefied natural gas terminals to put their threatened strikes on hold.
European gas prices fell as much as 11 per cent to the lowest in two weeks on optimism a deal can be reached.
Chevron’s Wheatstone facility.
The new deadline for industrial action at the Gorgon and Wheatstone plants is 6am local time Friday, a Chevron Australia spokesperson said in an emailed statement. The unions previously threatened to start partial strikes on September 7 and then escalate to full stoppages that would begin September 14 and last two weeks.
“We will continue to work through the bargaining process as we seek outcomes that are in the interests of both employees and the company,” the company said in the statement. “We will also continue to take steps to maintain safe and reliable operations in the event of disruption at our facilities.”
Offshore Alliance, a group comprising unions, didn’t immediately comment.
“It really is essential to explore all avenues to avoid industrial action,” said Richard Pratt, a consultant for Precision LNG. “Once strikes start, the parties are driven further apart so this is a welcome development.”
The two Australian LNG plants operated by Chevron made up about 7 per cent of global LNG supply last year. The extension of talks follows a compromise that another Australian exporter, Woodside Energy Group, reached with workers last month to prevent industrial action at its own plant.
The threat of strikes has roiled global gas markets since early August, when unions first voted for potential labor actions at the three plants. The European gas benchmark surged 40 per cent at one point, highlighting
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