US-listed shale gas developer Tamboran Resources has made a final investment decision (FID) for its Shenandoah South pilot project in Australia's Northern Territory (NT), it said today, adding that the plant will produce first sales gas from mid-2026.
The plant will be the first to produce commercial gas from the Beetaloo sub-basin, located 500km south of NT capital Darwin, via the under-construction Sturt Plateau pipeline linking it to the 145 TJ/d (3.9mn m³/d) Amadeus gas pipeline.
The FID comes after Tamboran signed a deal with traditional Aboriginal owners in August to allow sales of hydraulically fracked appraisal gas.
Tamboran plans to finish its three-well drilling programme in October-December, followed by stimulation and 30-day flow testing of the Shenandoah South 4H well in early 2026, before the remaining wells are stimulated in January-June 2026 ahead of first gas sales.
Separately, the NT's conservative Country Liberal Party (CLP) government will underwrite A$75mn of the A$180mn loan for Shenandoah South's compression facility to bring gas to market, mining and energy minister Gerard Maley said on 30 September.
The NT government has signed binding sales agreements with Tamboran for 40 TJ/d and with Beetaloo Energy Australia, formerly Empire Energy for up to 25 TJ/d. The supply meets the government's requirement of 55–60 TJ/d to power essential services, it said.
The development of the remote Beetaloo sub-basin has been controversial due to concerns about the impact on water quality, land disturbance and greenhouse gas emissions. But both major political parties in the NT — the CLP and Labor — support the local gas sector.
Tamboran is exploring LNG exports from Darwinin the longer term. It is partnering with Australian independent Santos on studies to expand the latter's operated 3.7mn t/yr Darwin LNG terminal, which holds permits for 10mn t/yr of capacity.
