The SEAAOC conference, Northern Australia’s largest and longest established petroleum conference, is particularly opportune given the recent estimation by Federal Minister for Tourism, Resources and Energy Martin Ferguson that the failure to find new Australian oil and gas supplies will cost the economy up to $27 billion a year.

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has also agreed to reduce barriers to exploration, as international demand escalates. At its recent meeting in Adelaide, COAG agreed to have the Productivity Commission review upstream petroleum regulation where crude oil and natural gas projects involve more than one jurisdiction.

The review is fitting as SEAAOC will have a strong focus on the latest developments in oil and gas exploration and development. The 2008 conference, to be held in Darwin from 16 - 18 July will focus on key developments in the Timor Sea, Browse Basin and North West Shelf and the export potential to supply the Asia-Pacific region.

Australia is ideally located to supply clean and plentiful natural gas to the Asia-Pacific region while offsetting greenhouse emissions. Darwin is already taking advantage of gas from the Bayu-Undan gas field, supplied to a new $1.75 billion LNG plant via a 500 km pipeline.

Northern Territory Government Chief Minister Paul Henderson, who will address SEAAOC, recently held high level talks with INPEX - one of the biggest players in the international gas industry - about piping gas to Darwin for LNG. “We’ve already attracted one gas plant in Darwin and I want to get another one,” he said.

Joe Marushack, President of ConocoPhillips Australia, the biggest energy company in the Timor Sea Region, will speak about the company’s development plans for the Darwin LNG plant and future opportunities.

The conference will also comprise case studies, keynote presentations, panel sessions and interactive workshops by industry leaders such as ENI Australia Managing Director Eros Agostinelli, MEO Australia Managing Director Chris Hart, Nexus Energy Managing Director Ian Tchacos, Arrow Energy Managing Director Nick Davies, Oilsearch CEO Peter Botten, as well as representatives from ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil and Shell Development Australia.

Each year the conference attracts hundreds of Australian and Southeast Asian offshore operators, oil and gas exploration representatives, pipeline owners/operators, energy generators, retailers and distributors; infrastructure and engineering companies, contractors, government regulators and representatives, and investors and consultants.