An update of Gas in Victoria

This is an update on Victorian Government action for reducing gas consumption in Victoria with the aim of achieving Net Zero in the next 20 years. In 2022 gas contributed 17% to Victoria’s GHG  emissions. To achieve Net Zero, gas consumption needs to be either zero or very low.      

The biggest consumers of gas in Victoria are households for cooking, heating and hot water. The government has been addressing this by stopping gas connection to new properties, incentives to replace gas appliances with electric appliances and now proposing the “end-of-life” gas appliances replacement only with electric appliances. The last is currently a proposal that is open for submissions till 28th February 2025 via the Building Electrification – Regulatory Impact Statement.

Individuals are encouraged to complete an on-line survey and/or make a submission. 
Completing the on-line survey will take about half an hour.
Making a submission is relatively easy. It does not need to be academic or complicated. Simple short submissions are the most effective.

Guidelines for making a submission are :

• Building Electrification RIS Summary - December 2024
  This summary is short and comprehensive.
  

• Building Electrification Regulatory Impact Statement - December 2024
  This document has 188 pages and is an expansion of the summary.
  

• Slide show from an explanatory meeting with a DEECA official.
  

• Example of a submission.
  

  To make and upload a submission click HERE , fill out the submission form and upload the your submission file.
  Simple short submissions are the most effective.

Other recent Government initiatives on gas are :

• Energy Efficiency for Rental Properties in Victoria - Fact Sheet
  December 2024

• Setting new targets for the Victorian Energy Upgrades program
  Submissions closed 9th January, 2025
  Submission from Alan Pears HERE​

• Victoria’s Renewable Gas Directions Paper
  Submissions close 7th February, 2025
  Targeted to Industrial gas users.

Victoria is a significant provider of gas for LNG export

- while we are being told that Victoria is running out of gas.

The images below are from the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) website HERE.

It shows that on the 21st January 2025, of the 746 TJ of gas coming into Victoria from Bass Strait, only 238 TJ was used in Victoria.

Of the remaining 508 TJ, 28 TJ went Tasmania and 480 TJ went into the East Coast gas grid that contributed to the 4,461 TJ that was used for overseas LNG export.

Even in the middle of winter (15th July, 2024), Victoria’s Bass Strait gas production was contributing 44 TJ to Australia’s LNG exports.