Santos wins final approval for Barossa gas project as environment advocates condemn ‘climate bomb’

Santos has received federal approval to commence production from its Barossa offshore gasfield off the coast of the Northern Territory. It marks the final approval required for the project, clearing the way for the gas giant to extract and pipe the gas to Darwin. “This is Australia’s dirtiest gas project and it should never have been given the green light,” said Gavan McFadzean, the Australian Conservation Foundation’s climate change and clean energy program manager. “This approval, in the middle of an election campaign, just goes to show the failure of climate policy in Australia to ensure the necessary phase-out of fossil fuels,” she said. “The Barossa Gas Project is subject to the Albanese Government’s strengthened safeguard mechanism, which requires major emitters to reduce or offset their emissions over time, in line with net zero by 2050 targets,” they said.