Acreage Release
Last updated:28 November 2023
As part of the Australian Government’s strategy to support the identification of suitable greenhouse gas (GHG) storage sites and to promote the exploration for oil and natural gas new offshore acreage is being released regularly. Energy companies are invited to submit work program bids under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006. Successful bidders are granted with the licence to explore for hydrocarbons and/or for suitable GHG storage sites Refer to the Department of Industry, Science and Resources for information on the acreage release processes for offshore petroleum exploration and greenhouse gas storage assessment.
Geoscience Australia supports these releases and ongoing investment in exploration with a suite of regional petroleum geological information and data (see below) and through targeted geological studies. Open access precompetitive geological and geophysical data is available from the National Offshore Petroleum Information Management System (NOPIMS) and the Geoscience Australia Portal.
Greenhouse Gas Storage Acreage Release
The Australian Government released ten offshore areas for greenhouse gas storage assessment on 29 August 2023. These areas complement the existing five GHG areas, released in December 2021 and awarded in August 2022 in alignment with the government’s implementation of strategies to achieve the committed target of net zero emissions by 2050. The 2023 release areas are located in the offshore Bonaparte, Browse, Northern Carnarvon, Perth, Otway, Bass and Gippsland basins. Closing date for the submission of work program bids is 28 November 2023 and new nominations are welcomed for consideration as part of future offshore greenhouse gas storage acreage releases.
Information on the 2023 release of areas for greenhouse gas storage assessment.
Downloadable map showing Australia's Oil and Gas Titles
Regional geology overviews for offshore basins
Geoscience Australia supports ongoing energy resource industry related activities in Commonwealth waters with a suite of regional petroleum geological information sets, comprising summaries on stratigraphy, petroleum systems, exploration histories and key references. Also included are various thematic maps and figures and information on the marine environment and marine parks in the proximity of basins of interest.
Previous Acreage Releases
Information relating to recent petroleum and greenhouse gas storage acreage releases, including the 2021 Petroleum Acreage Release, the 2021 Greenhouse Gas Storage Acreage Release and the 2022 Petroleum Acreage Release.