Regulator to Hear Chevron on LNG Dispute on 22 September

Chevron’s three applications requesting regulators to intervene in LNG labour dispute in Australia will be heard together on 22 September, Fair Work Commission President Justice Adam Hatcher said in a hearing on Tuesday.

• Chevron must participate in further mediation with the unions before the date of the hearing, Hatcher said.
• The firm applied for the so-called intractable bargaining declaration for its LNG facilities. If the submission is approved, the commission can decide to assist in further negotiations or make a determination on terms and conditions of employment.
• The unions have criticized the timeline of the hearing date as they do not have enough time to present an effective case with evidence by 15 September, the timeline given by the FWC, the union’s lawyer, Zach Duncalfe said.
• Offshore Alliance said earlier on Tuesday that it plans to continue industrial action until it secures a union-negotiated enterprise agreement.
• Industrial action at the Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG facilities began last Friday with stoppages of up to 11 hours per day. Strikes could intensify to full walkouts on 14 September, if no agreement is reached.
• Global weekly LNG exports last week rose by 4% to 7.5mn tons even as partial strikes began in Australia. Chevron's Gorgon plant saw four shipments, a seasonal norm but less than the five for the last five straight weeks. The Wheatstone project still sent out three cargoes, unchanged to previous weeks according to BNEF.