Shell predicts free gas forever from Gorgon and Prelude LNG projects

Dutch giant Shell forecasts it will never pay Australia for oil and gas extracted for the Gorgon and Prelude LNG projects that it can sell for up to almost $4 billion a year.

Shell owns 25 per cent of the Chevron-operated $US54 billion Gorgon LNG project and 67.5 per cent of its Prelude floating LNG project that are both liable to pay Petroleum Resources Rent Tax.

Shell’s outlook of no PRRT payments is recorded in notes to the 2020 financial accounts for the global group released last week.

The note may not be apparent to a layperson, but the meaning is plain to an accountant: free gas forever from Australia.

PRRT is payable when a project’s income exceeds losses, and this would not be expected for some years after production…