Australia Regulator Proposes Stricter Pollution Rules for Darwin LNG Plants

Australia's Northern Territory Environment Protection Authority (NT EPA) has proposed stricter environmental and pollution reporting rules for two major LNG projects in Darwin, operated by Santos and Inpex. The recommendations follow a review initiated after Inpex significantly revised its 2023/24 emissions estimates upwards, including for benzene, which raised community concerns about potential health impacts.

In October 2025, Inpex identified discrepancies between reported and actual emissions from its Ichthys LNG facility for the 2024 financial year, attributing them to unintentional errors in estimation methods. Following this, the NT EPA launched its own review, resulting in 23 recommendations. These include implementing numerical emission concentration limits and maximum mass emissions rates for pollutants, imposing stricter controls on hot venting, and requiring a comprehensive audit every five years to ensure best practices in pollution control.

Specifically for the Ichthys LNG facility, the NT EPA recommends the installation of continuous monitoring equipment to measure benzene and other concerning pollutants in real-time from the acid gas stream. Combined, the Ichthys LNG and Darwin LNG facilities supply approximately 10% of Japan and Taiwan's annual LNG imports.