A New Source of Vital Energy
Wheatstone is set to become one of Australia’s largest resource projects – providing greater security of supply and significant economic benefits such as employment, government revenue and local business opportunities.
In conjunction with the Gorgon Project, it will reinforce our position as a leading natural gas supplier and liquefied natural gas (LNG) operator in the Asia-Pacific region.
Chevron is the operator of the Wheatstone Project and holds an approximate 75 percent interest in the project.
Chevron is committed to providing much-needed new and cleaner burning energy to Australia and the Asia-Pacific region. Already Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has signed a Heads of Agreement (HOA) to take 4.1 million tonnes per annum of LNG from the Wheatstone Project to provide cleaner energy to Japan, while also becoming a partner in the Wheatstone gas resource and gas plant.
Providing Third Party Gas Opportunities
Ashburton North, in north Western Australia, is an ideal location for an LNG hub given its proximity to all the discovered gas resources in the Western Carnarvon Basin.
There are precious few good, suitable port sites in the region, and the Wheatstone gas plant provides a foundation for commercialising future gas resources in the region. Common use infrastructure will lower the economic hurdle for developing existing and future gas resources in the West Carnarvon Basin.
Already the Wheatstone Project has attracted Third Party gas with the local subsidiaries of Apache Corporation and Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) signing deals to join the project as natural gas suppliers and 25 per cent equity participants. Gas from the Apache and KUFPEC Julimar and Brunello fields will extend the life of the first two Wheatstone LNG trains.
Using Human Energy to Harness a Substantial New Resource
We discovered Wheatstone in August 2004 and in March 2008 announced our intention to develop the gas resource at a greenfield onshore LNG and domestic gas project.
Since then we've successfully completed a seven-well appraisal program to further understand the Wheatstone and nearby Chevron-operated Iago fields’ potential.
The results indicate we have a large enough natural gas resource base to underpin two LNG processing trains, each with a capacity of 4.3 million tonnes of LNG per annum and a domestic gas plant. We commenced Front End Engineering and Design in August 2009.
Drawing on all the human energy in Chevron, including at the Global Technology Centre in Perth, will make Wheatsone the most advanced, environmentally responsible LNG project in the world.
Site Selection
Responsibly and Respectfully Choosing the Best Location
In December 2008, we selected a preferred site at Ashburton North - 12 kilometres west of Onslow on the Pilbara coast of Western Australia as the location for the LNG and domestic gas plant.
We selected the Ashburton North site after a 12 month study and extensive community consultation to find the location most suitable from environmental, community, social impact and engineering aspects.
The Plant
Processing New Wheatstone Energy
The Wheatstone and Iago fields hold enough gas to underpin the first phase of the project. Gas from the Julimar and Brunello fields will extend the life of the first phase.
During this phase we plan to construct two LNG processing trains each with a capacity of 4.3 million tonnes of LNG per annum and a domestic gas plant . Eventually the plant may produce up to 25 million tonnes of LNG per year.