Woodside to start Scarborough seismic testing despite legal stoush

afr.com:

Woodside Energy will kick off seismic testing on Thursday for its delayed offshore Scarborough gas project, despite two ongoing legal actions filed in court challenging a regulator’s decision to approve the work.

The oil and gas producer on late Tuesday gave the Environmental Defenders Office, the legal firm representing both of the parties appealing the approval, 48 hours notice of starting the work.

Climate protesters outside the Woodside AGM in Perth in April. Tony McDonough

Offshore petroleum regulator NOPSEMA gave Woodside conditional approval for the seismic survey on August 31, after the company was forced to redo and expand Indigenous consultation on several environmental plans for Scarborough. This was a result of a court ruling last year which overturned an approval for a Santos gas project. Woodside said those conditions have since been met, and it intends to commence the work.

Several secondary environmental approvals from NOPSEMA are still outstanding, posing a risk of a delay to the start-up of the $16.5 billion Scarborough project, which will increase Woodside’s LNG exports to Asian markets. Citigroup is assuming a six-month delay to the 2026 date for the first LNG cargo being delivered.

The EDO is representing traditional custodian Raelene Cooper who says she has still not been properly consulted on the seismic work and is asking the Federal Court to find that the approval by NOPSEMA was unlawful. She said the seismic work could have harmful impacts on her Sea Country and Songlines.

“The whales are showing us all around the world that they are in trouble, and if they are in trouble then so is our very existence,” Ms Cooper said last month.

EDO special counsel Clare Lakewood told ABC News then that it