Northern Gas Pipeline

Part of the Global Gas Infrastructure Tracker, a Global Energy Monitor project.

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The Northern Gas Pipeline is an operating natural gas pipeline.

Location

The pipeline runs from Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory to Mount Isa in Queensland.

Project Details

Main Line

• Operator: Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd
• Owner: Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd
• Capacity: 871.99 mmcf/d / 92 TJ/d
• Length: 622 kilometers / 386 miles
• Cost: AU$800 million
• Status: Operating
• Start Year: 2019

Capacity Expansion

• Capacity: 350 TJ/d
• Status: Cancelled
• Start year: 2025

Extension

• Operator: Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd
• Owner: Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd
• Capacity: 500 TJ/d
• Length: 580 km
• Cost: AU$3–4 billion
• Status: Cancelled
• Start year: 2028

Main Line Twinning Project

• Operator: Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd
• Owner: Jemena Northern Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd
• Capacity: 1608 TJ/d
• Length: 622 kilometers
• Status: Cancelled
• Start year: 2028

Background

Main Line

Jemena was chosen to develop the Northern Gas Pipeline by the Northern Territory government in November 2015. Construction began in September 2017 and was expected to be completed by mid-2018, with an in-service date of late 2018.

In December 2018, construction was completed, and the pipeline entered commercial operation on January 3, 2019.

Wikipedia notes that the Northern Gas Pipeline solved the need for a North East Gas Interconnector: The Northern Gas Pipeline addresses a requirement known as the North East Gas Interconnector (NEGI) before it was built. The purpose of the NEGI is to provide a way to transport gas from Northern Territory production to eastern Australian consumers. Options for the NEGI included the Tennant Creek to Mount Isa route that has been built and an alternate course that would have connected from Alice Springs to Moomba in South Australia. There were four proponents invited to bid for the project, with two preferring each route. The successful tender was from Jemena to build and operate the pipeline, to link Tennant Creek to Mount Isa.

In June 2022, Jemena and Tamboran signed an MoU that would allow Tamboran to contract around 100 TJ per day of capacity through the Northern Gas Pipeline for the proposed Maverick Pilot Development in the Beetaloo Subbasin.

In September 2022, the Northern Gas Pipeline was shut down due to significant upstream gas production declines from the Blacktip gas field. According to a Jemena spokesperson, "the pipeline and Phillip Creek Compressor Station [were] not consistently receiving adequate gas flows to enable the safe operation of the facility." The shutdown lasted from September 2022 to December 2022.

In August 2024, Jemena completed a reversal capability project that would allow gas to flow from Queensland into the Northern Territory to help address supply gaps. The Northern Gas Pipeline failed to flow gas to Queensland between March 2024 and December 2024, highlighting the fragility of Northern Territory gas resources.

Environmental Impact

In March 2017, members of the Lock the Gate Alliance criticized the Northern Gas Pipeline as a means of opening the Northern Territory to fracking, despite a current moratorium on fracking. "The Northern Gas Pipeline could lock in decades of shale gas fracking across the iconic landscapes and waterways of the Northern Territory," said Naomi Hogan, Northern Territory Coordinator for the Lock the Gate Alliance.

Capacity Expansion

In the 2021 Australian National Gas Infrastructure Plan (NGIP), a major component of unlocking Beetaloo Basin natural gas resources was building the Beetaloo Lateral Pipeline, and along with it, a 350-terajoule-per-day expansion of either the Amadeus Gas Pipeline, the Northern Gas Pipeline, or the Carpentaria Gas Pipeline.

The International Energy Agency's "Australia 2023 Energy Policy Review" report mentions the Northern Gas Pipeline saying that "Jemena has proposed a project to double the capacity of the Northern Gas Pipeline and extend it to the Beetaloo Basin, but progression on this project is likely dependent on whether production commences in the basin."

As of 2025, no progress had been reported on the capacity expansion project. Given the lack of updates, as well as the lack of large-scale production in the Beetaloo Basin, the project is considered cancelled.

Extension

At the time of the original pipeline's completion, Jemena was also considering an extension of the pipeline from Mount Isa, Queensland to the Wallumbilla gas hub in Queensland. The extension would carry 700 terajoules per day of gas and be completed by 2022.

Earlier estimates of the capacity of the extension estimated the Northern Gas Pipeline could be expanded up to 700 terajoules per day. In November 2020, Jemena announced plans for a AU$5 billion-plus expansion and extension of its broader northern Australia grid, which included expanding the Northern Gas Pipeline from about 90 terajoules per day to as much as 1000 terajoules per day.

The extension project would run from Mount Isa, Queensland to Jemena's proposed Galilee Gas Pipeline near Longreach, Queensland. The connection would allow for gas transport to the Wallumbilla gas hub in Queensland. The distance between the two is around 580 km as the crow flies.

This extension is also mentioned in the 2021 Australian National Gas Infrastructure Plan.

As of 2025, no progress had been reported on the extension project. Given the lack of updates, as well as the lack of large-scale production in the Beetaloo Basin, the project is considered cancelled.

Main Line Twinning Project

In the 2021 Australian National Gas Infrastructure Plan, a potential twin pipeline along the Northern Gas Pipeline Mainline was suggested as part of a large-scale Beetaloo Basin expansion, which mentioned potential twinning or further expansion of the pipeline up to 1700 terajoules per day.

As of 2025, no progress had been reported on the twinning project. Given the lack of updates, as well as the lack of large-scale production in the Beetaloo Basin, the project is considered cancelled.