Gas discoveries in the early 1960s led Australia to a new era in energy.
The decade that followed saw huge projects undertaken to take advantage of the fast growing natural gas industry. The focus was on creating pipeline networks that serviced mainland cities.
In 1968, the fledgling natural gas industry was injected with $70 million to fund three pipeline projects: Roma to Brisbane (the first natural gas pipeline to be commissioned in Australia), Longford to Dandenong, and Moomba to Adelaide.
It was the year that the first iron ore slurry pipeline was used in Australia, with the honour going to the Savage River Mine development in Tasmania.
In Bass Strait, Esso put Australia’s first offshore production and drilling platform into place on the Barracouta field and, at their Long Island Point facility, Solar Turbines installed their first packages in Australia. These were used to drive crude forwarding pumps.
In 1969, the growth of the natural gas industry necessitated the development of Australian standards for natural gas and liquid petroleum distributions systems. These standards were to provide guidance to designers, pipeline contractors, statutory authorities and any other affected parties.
In the same year, the first public function of the Australian Pipe Line Contractors Association (APLCA) was held in Melbourne, attracting 160 delegates, and the first Pipeline News (The Australian Pipeliner’s predecessor) was published.
Not long after this, operations commenced on the Moomba to Adelaide gas pipeline. This was the longest continuously welded high pressure line in Australia.
The Victorian Ministry of Fuel and Power was deciding on two routes of proposed pipelines: the crude oil pipeline that would run between Western Port, Altona and Geelong and the ethane pipeline to run between Long Island Point and Altona.
In 1970, the Petroleum Information Bureau recorded that 1,609 km of new pipelines had been laid in Australia in the past year.
Saipem was to construct the Dongara (322 km north of Perth) to Pinjarra (97 km south of Perth) pipeline. This pipeline would supply natural gas to Perth, the Kwinana Power Station and Alcoa operations at Kwinana and Pinjarra.
The early decision to start in the south and work towards the north to clear the southern 97 km in the summer, contributed to the success of the project. This area, though hot and dry in summer, had an uncommonly high water table which was often above ground level in winter.
The Victorian Pipeline Commission began the construction of the Gas and Fuel Corporations of Victoria’s transmission line from Melbourne to Geelong. Carter Johnson, head of Australian Pipeline Construction (APC), brought innovation to the project. To solve the problem of what to do with the rock that came out of the ditch, they approached Austral Mining of Melbourne to design a special plant which could be towed beside the trench to crush the rocks and feed them back into the trench.
However, not all ventures ran smoothly. The Long Island Point to Altona ethane gas pipeline was plagued by conservation groups attempting to have the bay crossing re-routed onto land, and 26 unions formed an Anti-Pipeline Committee to protest against the effects on Port Philip Bay.
With growing unrest, at least seven pipeline contractors (including Red Ru, Australian Pipeline Construction and Siapem) were forced to meet and discuss industrial problems, eventually forming the Pipeline Industry Industrial Group.
In 1971, Australian Pipeline Contractors Association (APCA) chairman Lucio Lusso said that the association would aim to achieve successful industrial relations, be across innovation and successfully train personnel. As such, a draft code of the Australian Standard for the natural gas industry was submitted for public review.
West Australian Natural Gas (WANG) was established to own and operate the Dongara to Pinjarra pipeline. The pipeline was completed within the year.
However, Union unrest was not abating, protests caused a delay that led to the re-tendering of contracts for the Port Phillip Bay ethane pipeline. It was eventually won by Australian Pipeline Construction.
In 1972, the Port Phillip Bay ethane pipeline was finally completed. The Beaver pipelaying barge was used in its construction, laying an average of 3658 m of pipe per week.
The construction of Victoria’s natural gas pipeline system was well underway. Siapem was contracted to construct the pipeline running from Brooklyn to Ballarat and Bendigo. Along with Geelong, these two regional towns were the first to receive natural gas in Victoria.
In this same year, and following on from the success of Pipeline News, the first edition of The Australian Pipeliner magazine was published. The magazine was established to act as a regular forum to keep up-to-date with new projects, products, technology and people. It was a handy reference for everyone in the industry.
Lucio Lusso said that opportunities were expanding, noting that promising discoveries of hydrocarbons had been made, opening the door to new projects.
At the fourth annual Pipeline Industry Convention, Maurice Stratton, the Victorian Minister of Fuel and Power, flagged that pipelines would be increasingly subject to public scrutiny and the control of regulators.
In 1973, the Commonwealth Government announced they would establish a National Pipeline Authority to plan and construct a national pipeline system and implement policies on natural resources. The Pipeline Authority Bill 1973, which gave the National Pipeline Authority its terms of reference, was passed.
The Australian pipeline industry was gearing up for its biggest workload to date. A lot of the work was to come from the construction of the Moomba to Sydney gas pipeline, an extension of the Moomba to Adelaide pipeline.
In 1974, the industry was facing production shortages due in part to industrial disputes in Britain and the worldwide fuel crisis. At home, industrial disputes and extensive flooding throughout northwest NSW stopped work twice on the Moomba to Sydney pipeline.
The NT Minister for Minerals and Energy, Dr Goff Letts MLA, said that the Palm Valley and Mereenie gas fields were to be linked up with the Cooper Basin, Adelaide and Sydney gas system in less than five years.
By 1975, international interest in the Australian industry was being felt. Mr J W Kerr, Vice President of the International Gas Union, announced that 5,938 km of pipelines would be laid in Australia over the next five years.
A number of projects were planned or started, including the Keon Park, Melbourne to Wodonga natural gas pipeline; the Jamestown to Port Pirie pipeline; the duplication of the Longford to Dandenong pipeline; and the construction of the offshore platforms at the Tuna and Mackerel fields.
In 1976, the APCA changed its name to become the Australian Pipeline Industry Association (APIA). The focus of the association was widened to include membership of organisations generally connected with the pipeline industry to strengthen APIA’s position as being a forum where all interested people could meet and discuss news and issues.
In the same year, Saipem used automatic welding for the first time on the Moomba to Sydney pipeline. Consistency in quality improved with this method because it relied on the machine’s calibration rather than the welder’s physicality.
In 1977, Steel Mains opened a fully automated steel pipe plant in Kwinana, WA, and the Commonwealth Government established the National Energy Advisory Committee to advise on developments in technology in the production and distribution of energy.
In WA, participants in the North West Shelf Venture, Australia’s largest private enterprise joint venture, voiced their concern that the inhospitability and remoteness of the area would create unforeseen difficulties. They believed that the LNG development could not be economically sustained without exporting 53 per cent of the reserves.
The Queensland Government Insurance Office approved finance for the Surat Basin Silver Springs to Boxleigh natural gas pipeline and tenders were sought.
In 1978, APIA’s President, Stuart Macdonald, reflecting on APIA’s 10th anniversary said that the pipeline industry’s second decade would be much less turbulent than its first. Except he hadn’t reckoned on nature.
Some projects were plagued by delays from flooding. Construction was shut down on both the looping of the Dutson to Dandenong natural gas pipeline and the Silver Springs to Wallumbilla natural gas pipeline in QLD.
In 1979, the State Energy Commission of WA (SECWA) called for registration of interest from consulting firms for the Dampier to Perth natural gas pipeline. It was to connect the North West Shelf gas fields to the southwest of the state. The development also included the construction of a subsea pipeline from the North Rankin ‘A’ platform to South Withnell Bay.
The Sydney to Newcastle natural gas pipeline commenced, as well as route survey work for a pipeline in Central Victoria to carry gas to Maryborough, to replace the liquefied petroleum gas they had been using.
This decade proved to be a mixed bag. It delivered big projects, fueling innovation in the industry. The rate of expansion attracted international attention and put Australia on the map. But with it came industrial disruptions that would continue to plague construction in the coming decade.
This article was featured in the 2018 APGA 50th Anniversary celebration book.
If you have news you would like featured in The Australian Pipeliner contact Managing Director David Convery at dconvery@gs-press.com.au
