There are two major hydrocarbon projects in the Ashburton North Strategic Industrial Area (ANSIA) – the Wheatstone Project and the Macedon Project.
The Wheatstone Project is a US$34 billion joint venture between Australian subsidiaries of Chevron, Kuwait Petroleum Exploration Company, Woodside Petroleum, Kyushu Electric Power Company and PE Wheatstone. Wheatstone commenced construction in December 2011, with first export of LNG starting in October 2017.
The foundation stage consists of two LNG trains with a combined capacity of 8.9 million tonnes per annum, plus a 200 terajoule per day domestic gas plant. Chevron has approval to expand LNG production to 25 million tonnes per annum. Wheatstone is expected to employ approximately 350 people when fully operational.
The majority of the project’s foundation capacity will be fed with natural gas from the Wheatstone and Iago fields, with the remainder supplied from the Julimar and Brunello fields.
The Macedon Project was officially commissioned in September 2013 after a construction period of two years, and includes four offshore production wells and an onshore gas treatment plant in the ANSIA. The project’s domestic gas plant has capacity to supply approximately 200 terajoules per day, which is transported via the Dampier to Bunbury Natural Gas Pipeline into the Western Australia market.
Both the Wheatstone and Macedon projects have made significant contributions to the town of Onslow, particularly during the construction phase. Through State Development Agreements, extensive provisions have been made to improve community infrastructure and critical services within Onslow which will provide a sound basis for the future growth of the town and in anticipation of attracting further industry to the ANSIA.
