Australian oil and gas giant Woodside Energy has taken over operator leadership from the Australian subsidiary of US-based energy major ExxonMobil for assets located off the Gippsland coast in Victoria.
After the duo agreed on Transfer operator role To Woodside for Bass Strait Assets Billed as Australia’s first major offshore oil and gas development, operation of the Gippsland Basin assets was transferred from ExxonMobil to the Australian player on 1 June 2026, marking a historic day for the company, as it returns to its roots in Victoria.
The company takes its name from the small town of Woodside, located 225 kilometers east of Melbourne, and officially began life in 1954 as a junior oil explorer in the Gippsland region. As a result, the next chapter is seen as reconnecting the Australian player with this history, as it builds on the legacy started in the region.
Given that the transition involves transferring operation, not ownership of assets, Liz WestcottCEO Woodside stressed: “Bringing our Gippsland Basin assets to Woodside is also a homecoming, bringing us back to the state where our company started more than 70 years ago.”
Gippsland assets include the Gippsland Basin Joint Venture (GBJV) and the Kipper Unit Joint Venture (KUJV). While Woodside and Esso Australia Resources, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil Australia, each hold a 50% stake in GBJV, KUJV is jointly owned by Woodside, Esso Australia Resources and Mitsui.
The Gippsland Basin’s assets include six operational offshore platforms, two onshore processing facilities as well as a helipad, marine terminal and offices, with approximately 1,200 employees and contractors supporting its activities. The Australian operator claims that every molecule of energy generated by operations is provided to power homes and industry in the country’s eastern states, as it has done since its inception.
According to the 2024 Bass Strait Decommissioning Report, assets in Bass Strait include 421 wells, 19 platforms, six subsea facilities, and more than 800 kilometers of subsea pipelines connecting them to onshore processing facilities at Longford and Long Island Point. The first was commissioned in 2017.
The company plans to invest in delivering more gas, including additional development of Kipper field and enhance project financing decisions The tower field, with Kipper Project 1B Getting more gas to the market before the winter of 2026.
Woodside concluded: “The assets will remain central to Woodside’s Australian operations, supporting ongoing energy supply while developing a major decommissioning program and evaluating new opportunities – including the development of four gas fields.
“If approved, it could supply up to 200 petajoules of gas to the East Coast gas market – enough to power all homes in Melbourne for about two years.”
Boost your brand with marine energy ⤵️
Steal the spotlight and establish your brand in the heart of the outside world!
Join us to make a greater impact and grow your presence at the core of the marine energy community!
