{
  "id": 14119027,
  "title": "Shell calls Australia’s gas reserve plan a ‘sledgehammer’",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/13/shell-calls-australias-gas-reserve-plan-a-sledgehammer-14119027",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-13T03:46:23.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/business/2026/10/13/shell-calls-australia-s-gas-reserve-plan-a-sledgehammer-that-risks-market-failure"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Shell, an Australian energy firm, has criticized the government's plan to require liquefied natural gas (LNG) producers to set aside a portion of their output for domestic use. The company, which is one of the world's largest LNG exporters, sees the policy as a \"sledgehammer to crack a nut\" that will ultimately harm the already functional market. Energy major Shell Australia's chair, Cecile Wake, expressed her concerns during a conference in Sydney. While not entirely opposed to the idea of a domestic gas reserve, Wake pointed out several flaws in the design of the current policy. The government's legislation aims to address supply shortfalls and lower energy prices by requiring energy exporters, including Shell, Origin Energy, and Santos, to reserve up to one-fifth of their production starting from January 1, 2028. This oversupply is intended to meet 110% of forecast demand on Australia's east coast. However, Wake argues that such a heavy-handed intervention could drive prices down too far and potentially create market failures. She emphasized that the policy does not propose modest price reductions, but rather aims to bring prices below the long-run marginal cost of bringing new production online. Australia has long been a major LNG exporter, shipping more gas overseas than it consumes domestically. Despite this, the majority of the country's significant gas reserves are situated in the northwest region, far from the more densely populated southeast where demand is concentrated.",
  "summary": "The government will introduce legislation in Parliament to implement its new domestic gas reservation policy, which aims to address supply shortfalls and bring down energy prices.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Shell calls Australia’s gas reserve plan a ‘sledgehammer’",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/13/shell-calls-australias-gas-reserve-plan-a-sledgehammer",
        "published": "2026-10-13T03:46:23.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}