Workers at Chevron’s Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG plants now aim to start protected action on Friday, one day after their initial plan.
The Offshore Alliance, which includes the Maritime Union of Australia and Australian Workers’ Union, previously said that protected industrial action would start at the Gorgon and Wheatstone downstream facilities and the Wheatstone platform on September 7.
In addition, the alliance said on Wednesday that Chevron’s workers plan a total strike for two weeks from September 14 as part of an ongoing dispute over pay and conditions.
This week, Chevron has been trying to narrow points of difference with employees and their representatives through further bargaining mediated by the Fair Work Commission.
“We have been advised by the unions that protected industrial action will not take place at our facilities until 6.00am AWST Friday, September 8,” a Chevron Australia spokesperson told LNG Prime.
“We will continue to work through the bargaining process as we seek outcomes that are in the interests of both employees and the company,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that the company will also continue to take steps to “maintain safe and reliable operations in the event of disruption at our facilities.”
The Gorgon LNG plant on Barrow Island has three trains and a production capacity of some 15.5 mtpa, while the Wheatstone LNG plant near Onslow has a capacity of about 8.9 mtpa.
These two projects have a combined capacity of about 25.4 mtpa.
Japan’s Jera is the biggest buyer of Wheastone LNG volumes, while its compatriots Kyushu Electric and Tohoku Electric also take supplies from this plant.
Jera is also one the biggest buyers of Gorgon LNG volumes along with Japan’s Osaka Gas and Tokyo Gas, China’s PetroChina, and India’s Petronet LNG.
