Jun 3, 2026 · 31 min · 10 segments
Managing the decline of gas in Australia is a multi-decade challenge. In this podcast, our energy experts detail the the tough decisions Australia has to make. In this podcast, Grattan Associate Molly…
Alison ReeveGuest
Molly ChapmanHost
It points to a lot of data that explains why Australia can't keep using gas the way we have been, but it also plots a realistic pathway towards a coordinated and coherent low gas future.
You dive into the fact that Australia's already on its way to reducing our gas and gas emissions, and how governments should prioritize policies to continue those efforts and not go backwards.
But you also go into detail on the level of coordination that's going to be required in the transition away from gas.
This includes the development of renewable alternatives and approaches to regulating gas pipelines, but also new mechanisms for financing the development of gas-powered generators.
I think the other really interesting point you make in this report is that governments need to make the most of the gas export sector while we still have it.
That's where you dive into some of those hot button issues we've been hearing so much about lately, the gas reservation and the gas tax.
I think it might be worth starting at the very start and going back to the basics.
When we talk about gas, what are we actually talking about? Where does it come from and how do we use it?
So gas is a pretty important energy source that, and it's all through the Australian economy.
What we're really talking about is a gas called methane, which is composed of carbon and hydrogen.
It sits mostly underneath the ground, either under the ocean or on land in what are called reservoirs, and we drill for it, and we extract it, and then there's sort of four things that we use it for.
We use it in households, so a lot of our listeners will probably have a gas stove, a gas water heater, or a gas heating system.
It can be used for heat, you know, smelting metals, food processing, those sorts of things.
And also particularly in industry as a feedstock, where we're not using it for its energy content, we're using it for its chemical content, so that's for things like making plastics or fertilizers.
Gas is also used in the electricity system for backup generation, and about three quarters of the gas that Australia extracts we turn into what's called LNG or liquefied natural gas.
So that's where you take this gas, you cool it down, and you put it under a lot of pressure.
I think I have a bit of an orientation now, so let's jump into your new report, Out of Gas.
It points to a lot of data that explains why Australia can't keep using gas the way we have been, but it also plots a realistic pathway towards a coordinated and coherent low gas future.
You dive into the fact that Australia's already on its way to reducing our gas and gas emissions, and how governments should prioritize policies to continue those efforts and not go backwards.
But you also go into detail on the level of coordination that's going to be required in the transition away from gas.
This includes the development of renewable alternatives and approaches to regulating gas pipelines, but also new mechanisms for financing the development of gas-powered generators.
I think the other really interesting point you make in this report is that governments need to make the most of the gas export sector while we still have it.
That's where you dive into some of those hot button issues we've been hearing so much about lately, the gas reservation and the gas tax.
I think it might be worth starting at the very start and going back to the basics.
When we talk about gas, what are we actually talking about? Where does it come from and how do we use it?
So gas is a pretty important energy source that, and it's all through the Australian economy.
What we're really talking about is a gas called methane, which is composed of carbon and hydrogen.
It sits mostly underneath the ground, either under the ocean or on land in what are called reservoirs, and we drill for it, and we extract it, and then there's sort of four things that we use it for.
We use it in households, so a lot of our listeners will probably have a gas stove, a gas water heater, or a gas heating system.
It can be used for heat, you know, smelting metals, food processing, those sorts of things.
And also particularly in industry as a feedstock, where we're not using it for its energy content, we're using it for its chemical content, so that's for things like making plastics or fertilizers.
Gas is also used in the electricity system for backup generation, and about three quarters of the gas that Australia extracts we turn into what's called LNG or liquefied natural gas.
So that's where you take this gas, you cool it down, and you put it under a lot of pressure.
I think I have a bit of an orientation now, so let's jump into your new report, Out of Gas.
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