New South Wales Government Buys Back Two CSG Licences Held by Pangaea Resources

Government of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) has announced the cancellation of two coal seam gas exploration licences following buy-backs.

Petroleum Exploration Licences (PELs) 437 and 476 were held by Pangaea Resources.

PEL 437 covered 565,497 hectares in the central north of NSW, from approximately the Gwydir Highway to the Queensland border while PEL 476 covered 1,009,357 hectares north of Maitland and including areas around Taree, Tuncurry, Bulahdelah and Dungog.

“The buy-back program is Action 4 of the NSW Gas Plan, which provides a one-off opportunity for PEL holders to surrender titles for limited compensation,” Minister for Resources and Energy Anthony Roberts said in a statement Wednesday.

Roberts further stated, “The NSW Gas Plan has reduced this area to 15 per cent. We are fixing Labor’s disgraceful legacy and mismanagement of the resources sector. Our new Strategic Release Framework will see an assessment of environmental, economic and social factors, with community consultation conducted upfront, before a title area is considered for release.”

The Minister did not give details about the amount paid as compensation to Pangaea.

"Because we are in negotiations with a number of companies to regain control of vast parts of New South Wales, I'm not at liberty at this stage because of commercial in confidence to inform you of the sum we are paying," ABC Online quoted as saying. "But I hope to do that once the buyback period is completed."