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Cases / Carbon capture and climate intervention · Australia · 2006

Gorgon LNG carbon storage fell short; gap closed with credits

Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
Not on record
  • The record does not name which of my species, waters, soils or forests were harmed.
What the record lacks: 2 none on record · 4 insufficient · 1 not measured See the gaps

Chevron's Gorgon LNG plant in Western Australia was approved in 2006 on condition that it bury at least 80% of its reservoir CO2 over any five-year period, and it missed the target. The shortfall was closed by buying more than 5 million carbon credits, and the sources reviewed do not quantify the net climate effect.

What?
Gorgon LNG missed its state-approved carbon storage target and closed the gap with purchased credits RenewEconomy
Where?
Western Australia Boiling Cold
When?
Approved in 2006; shortfalls reported in 2020, 2021 and 2024 Boiling Cold
Who?
Gained
  • Chevron — operator of Gorgon LNG; closed the storage gap by buying credits IEEFA
Lost
  • Australian federal government — contributed A$60m to the facility RenewEconomy
Harmed
None on record
Why?
Chevron attributed the shortfall to reservoir pressure and a system blocked by sand. RenewEconomy
How?
Underground injection under a 2006 approval condition, with the shortfall covered by carbon credits Boiling Cold
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

Western Australia's 2006 approval required at least 80% of reservoir CO2 to be buried in any five-year period, and in the first four years 12.2 million tonnes came out and 2.7 million tonnes (22%) were buried, Boiling Cold reported in 2020.

Chevron acknowledged in July 2021 that it had missed the target, attributing the failure to reservoir pressure and a system blocked by sand, RenewEconomy reported.

In 2023-24 about 1.6 million tonnes were captured, 30% of the target and the lowest year since 2019, and about 10 million tonnes were injected over 2019 to 2024, RenewEconomy reported in 2024.

IEEFA reported that Chevron bought more than 5 million credits to close the gap, at a cost of up to $184 million.

    In court and with insurers

    Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

    Lawsuits and rulings

    No court case on record. No court has ruled on this case.

    Insurers

    No insurer decision on record.

    What we don't know

    Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.

    Nature

    • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

    Record

    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: Chevron's fact sheet gives over 11 million tonnes injected from 2019 to May 2025 (company statement).
    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: gas production began in 2016 and carbon injection in August 2019 (IEEFA summary).
    • Insufficient The exact credit count of 5.23 million appears in search results only and is not verified.
    • Insufficient Gorgon's 2024-25 figures are not verified in primary sources.
    • None on record Penalty status: none on record in the sources reviewed.
    • None on record Net climate effect of the shortfall: not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Did the harm stop?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Who paid?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Sources

    Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations✓ Communities and civil society— Researchers

    Press and investigations

    Communities and civil society

    Connected cases

    Related matters, and cases linked to this one through the same organisations, with the role each played in both.
    Terms used on this page

    Carbon and conservation finance

    Carbon credit
    A certificate representing one tonne of carbon dioxide (or equivalent) that a project says it reduced, avoided or removed. Buyers use credits to balance their own emissions in climate claims.
    Offset
    Using carbon credits to balance emissions released elsewhere, so that a buyer can claim lower or zero net emissions.

    Law and courts

    Arbitration
    A private dispute process in which an appointed arbitrator, instead of a court, decides the case.

    Insurance

    Underwriter
    An insurer, or a person at an insurer, who assesses a risk and decides whether and on what terms to insure it.
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