Community & Ethics.

OUR SOCIAL LICENCE TO OPERATE

Blue Energy interacts and engages with stakeholders in many towns and communities as part of the Company’s activities on exploration tenements across Queensland and the Northern Territory.

We are proud of our record and ongoing commitment to earn the respect of the various communities with which we are involved.

This approach has achieved extensive community and stakeholder support for, and approval of, our operations and of the way we conduct ourselves as guests in those communities.

At the same time, we are mindful that groups such as landholders, business owners, service providers, traditional owners, community groups, and other organisations, may be affected in some way by the work undertaken by Blue Energy.

With both primary industries and the energy sector being so vital to our everyday lives, it is therefore important that we continue to support community interest and involvement in all issues relating to our important energy sector.

STAKEHOLDERS

Blue Energy’s goal continues to be the building of effective and positive relationships in each of the locations in which we operate and to ensure our operations benefit local communities. Relationship-building is an ongoing process, and we are dedicated to fairly and effectively managing our stakeholder consultations, negotiations, and land access. Our relationships are built on:

  • transparent and open communications;
  • mutual respect; and
  • establishment and maintenance of relationships meeting, and where possible, exceeding expectations.

Understandably, landowners and others will continue to have questions and we take every opportunity to discuss all of the issues and to provide factual information about petroleum exploration.

We also view our role as working with stakeholders in areas such as planning work programs with consideration for landowner businesses and reaching agreement on operational aspects of our business that minimises our impact on the landowners’ activities. We have found most landowners receptive to our approaches.

Finally, we respect the rights of any who may not wish to pursue discussions regarding petroleum exploration activities.

COMMUNITY SUPPORT

We believe the exploration activities conducted by Blue Energy will bring economic growth and opportunities to local communities, including providing direct support to local organisations and events.

Our community sponsorships have includes:

  • Ballyneety Rodeo Club
  • Aramac Rodeo Club Inc
  • Summer Family Appeal
  • NeboQuick Shear
  • Aramac school
  • Nebo Bushmans carnival Inc
  • Flock and Ewe show
  • Maryborough Hospital
  • Muttaburra school

EXPLORATION, DEVELOPMENT & PRODUCTION

While industry media coverage centres on the activity surrounding Queensland’s major, high profile LNG export projects, these projects do not represent the exploration activities undertaken by Blue Energy.

Exploration is finding a petroleum opportunity, drilling the opportunity and if successful appraising it to determine commerciality. This process is essentially similar for both conventional and unconventional hydrocarbons. Such activities can be as minimal as conducting desktop studies which can lead to drilling of stand-alone core holes or exploration wells and with success, to multiple pilot appraisal wells that are production tested for up to 12 months. Alternatively, conventional oil and gas exploration wells can be tested then additional appraisal wells drilled to confirm the extent of any hydrocarbon accumulation.

Compared to development and production activities, exploration is low in intensity (well numbers) and uncertain in outcome (it may fail or might succeed). In fact, petroleum exploration activities have been ongoing in many areas of Queensland for decades and have commonly gone unnoticed because of the relatively small impact.

THE ENVIRONMENT

Blue Energy understands and fully endorses the need to protect valuable aquifers. Fortunately, CSG does not come from prolific or high quality conventional aquifer sands, such as key sandstone aquifers of the Great Artesian Basin.

To produce CSG, the target coals need to have very limited connectivity to aquifer formations; otherwise, only water would be produced with no gas. A report from Geoscience Australia to the Australian Government recommends a precautionary approach but concludes the risk of impact from CSG production is minimal to the clean aquifers of the Great Artesian Basin. This point is being confirmed by more and more scientifically robust studies which highlight specific and localised areas of impact and concern, and which will be the focus for monitoring and mitigation of impacts.

The petroleum industry is heavily regulated, and has been for many decades. In Queensland, the Petroleum and Gas Act underwent a major regulatory update in 2004. Each year since then, more regulations have been installed and continue to be added. For each of Blue Energy’s exploration tenements, we operate under an Environmental Authority that can have more than 100 conditions specific to the area of the permit. At present, the current number of regulations and conditions are estimated to total around 2,500 for exploration activities.