Notification of Publication of Santos' Response to Public Review Comments
Darwin Pipeline Duplication Project (EPBC 2022/09372)
The following notice is published pursuant to section 95B of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) and regulations 16.03 and 16.04 of the EPBC Regulations 2000.
Santos NA Barossa Pty Ltd is proposing to construct, operate and decommission a subsea gas export pipeline between the offshore Barossa field and the existing Darwin Liquefied Natural Gas (DLNG) facility. The Darwin Pipeline Duplication Project (Project) involves the construction of an approximately 123 km section of this pipeline, including 23 km of pipeline in Commonwealth waters and 100 km of pipeline in Northern Territory (NT) waters.
The Project will be undertaken in three areas:
- Offshore waters including NT waters outside Darwin Harbour and Commonwealth waters;
- Darwin Harbour; and
- Onshore where the Project pipeline crosses the shoreline within the existing DLNG facility disturbance footprint.
The Project construction phase includes seabed preparation, trenching and offshore spoil disposal, installation of the pipeline and associated infrastructure, including an onshore section at the DLNG facility. A range of vessels will support Project activities, including surveys, anchor handling, environmental monitoring and crew changes. Pre-commissioning activities will include flooding, cleaning, gauging and testing of the pipeline and pipeline dewatering in Commonwealth waters. Project operational activities will include vessel-based inspection, maintenance and repair activities along the operational pipeline. Decommissioning activities will be conducted as per regulatory requirements.
A delegate of the Australian Government Minister for the Environment and Water has determined that the Project is a Controlled Action under section 75 of the EPBC Act with assessment by Preliminary Documentation required under section 87. The matters protected by Part 3 of the EPBC Act that have been determined to be controlling provisions for the Project are:
- Listed threatened species and communities (sections 18 & 18A).
- Listed migratory species (sections 20 & 20A).
- Commonwealth marine areas (sections 23 & 24A).
Following publication of the Preliminary Documentation Report for public review, Santos has prepared responses to comments made during the public review period (11 November 2023 to 15 December 2023) and is required under section 95B of the EPBC Act to publish responses to comments for information only. In the course of responding to public review comments, Santos has considered whether any updates to the Preliminary Documentation Report are required. Santos has not identified the need for any updates to the Preliminary Documentation Report arising from the public review comments. The Preliminary Documentation Report and the response to comments can be accessed below.
Hard copies of the Preliminary Documentation Report and the response to comments are also available for viewing during business hours at the following locations until Friday 15 March 2024:
- NT EPA, Level 1, Arnhemica House, 16 Parap Road, Parap
- Santos Shopfront, T14/15, 41 The Mall, Darwin
- Darwin City Library, Civic Centre, Harry Chan Avenue, Darwin
- Casuarina Library, 17 Bradshaw Terrace, Casuarina
Persons with special needs (i.e., for whom English is a second language or who have a vision impairment) may contact Santos by phone (1800 267 600) or email (offshore.consultation@santos.com) for assistance in accessing the material.