A new report by The Australia Institute reveals that Australia has exported enough gas in the past five years to meet domestic demand for two decades — even as local gas prices soar and warnings of shortages continue.
The report highlights that Australia’s cheapest gas is being sent overseas, while high-cost and environmentally harmful gas is left for domestic consumption. Between 2019 and 2024, the federal government approved exports equivalent to 22 years of the nation’s gas needs.
It also found that the gas industry used more gas to process exports than Australians used for power generation, manufacturing, or households combined. In 2023–2024, a staggering 83% of Australia’s natural gas output was exported.
Australians are now paying between four and seven times more for gas than consumers in other major gas-producing countries such as the US, Russia, Qatar, and Canada.
Retired Air Vice Marshal John Blackburn warned that the mass exportation of gas poses a “deeply concerning” national security risk, pointing out that Australia has not conducted a National Energy Security Assessment since 2011.
Meanwhile, Weld Australia CEO Geoff Crittenden said the country was at a “fork in the road,” risking the collapse of its manufacturing base due to high energy costs. He added that soaring gas prices are also driving up the cost of everyday goods and electricity, burdening Australian households further.
