PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Oil and gas major Woodside and its Sunrise joint venture (JV) partners have committed to the development of the Greater Sunrise fields, northwest of Darwin.

Woodside said in a statement on Monday that the JV would consider all the key issues for delivering the gas for processing and liquefied natural gas (LNG) sales to Timor-Leste, compared to delivering the gas to Australia.

The studies will incorporate and update previous work by using the latest technologies and cost estimates while also considering the socioeconomic, capacity building, safety, environmental, strategic and security benefits of the various options. The studies will include evaluation of which option provides the most meaningful benefit for the people of Timor-Leste.

The JV is aiming to complete the concept select programme expeditiously given the benefits that could flow from developing the Sunrise fields.

Woodside Energy CEO Meg O’Neill said the development of new technologies and growing demand for safe and reliable LNG meant it was the right time to bring forward the concept select program.

“It is important we continue to look at ways to develop the Greater Sunrise fields using the latest technologies by evaluating, for example, modular LNG, that did not exist in the past. Against a backdrop of global geopolitical instability and constrained energy supply chains, there is an opportunity for the Sunrise JV to significantly advance this regionally important project,” she said.

In parallel to the concept select programme, the JV is progressing the negotiation of the new Production Sharing Contract, Petroleum Mining Code and associated agreements with the Timor-Leste and Australian governments, which upon finalisation will provide the fiscal and regulatory certainty required for a development to proceed.

The Sunrise JV comprises TIMOR GAP, Woodside Energy and Osaka Gas Australia.