Ah yes, probity Australian style:
Consultancy firm EY did not tell the New South Wales government it was conducting work for Santos before being awarded a $67,375 contract to inform a policy statement that greenlit the gas giant’s Narrabri development.
EY’s involvement in the government’s “future of gas statement” was not disclosed in the July 2021 report that described the Narrabri project as “critical to drive regional economic development and support supply security”.
The statement, which was used by the government to announce it was “backing in Narrabri gas project”, also did not disclose EY was being paid by Santos for assurance services. EY separately offers gas companies strategic advice on issues like “changing regulations”.
…An EY spokesperson told Guardian Australia it did not disclose the separate paid work with Santos as it did not consider it to be a real or perceived conflict of interest.
How reassuring.
This bullshit ‘Chinese wall’ argument is made all of the time, but usually, the payments are at least declared.
And let me remind you that STO will go ahead with Narrabri subject to none of the NSW Chief Scientist’s original 14 conditions for coal-seam gas extraction. The IPC approval process imposed its own conditions as the project was bullied through by ScoM’s “gas-led recovery”:
But during the IPC’s public hearings process, several scientists raised serious concerns about inevitable risks to water resources through the extraction process, as well as about salt waste, fugitive emissions and the climate change impact of new gas production in a world aiming for net-zero emissions.
Those concerns have been addressed in the conditions imposed by the IPC. They include a four-phase development, as well as extra conditions around the modelling and monitoring of groundwater impacts and the reporting of fugitive emissions, and new conditions on biodiversity, offsets, waste storage and treatment and consultation on Aboriginal cultural heritage.
At issue are millions of tonnes of carcinogenic salts. Where they are going to go, nobody knows! Probably into the Great Artesian Basin.
The project is 100% domestically reserved and can sell gas in Sydney for under $7Gj. But don’t be fooled. This will not reduce the cartel’s power. STO will shift other, cheaper, unreserved volumes offshore. Keeping the local market squeezed.
So, Narrabri gas will never be sold in Sydney below $12Gj.
Everybody involved in this project is covered in shit.
