{
  "id": 4579084,
  "title": "Richard Denniss is calling for a gas export tax, but an effective royalty system would be a better option",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/31/richard-denniss-is-calling-for-a-gas-export-tax-but-an-effective",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-31T04:46:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Conversation AU",
    "slug": "the-conversation-au",
    "url": "https://theconversation.com/richard-denniss-is-calling-for-a-gas-export-tax-but-an-effective-royalty-system-would-be-a-better-option-289720"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Richard Denniss, the head of the Australia Institute, has advocated for a gas export tax to address the ineffectiveness of the current Petroleum Resources Rent Tax (PRRT) in generating revenue. However, Denniss argues that an effective royalty system would be a better option. The PRRT differs from a royalty system, as it is levied on profits, while royalties are calculated on either production volume or market value. This means that even a company with no taxable income still pays a royalty based on production. Denniss claims that the PRRT has become ineffective due to gas companies being exempt from the tax, resulting in a \"free\" resource for them. He suggests a 25% gas export tax, but his proposal is criticized for focusing on the gas industry's alleged \"trickery\" rather than addressing the PRRT's shortcomings. An alternative approach could be to implement a 25% export gas tax, but the essay does not provide details on the tax's application, such as whether it would be levied on export volumes or value. A royalty system, on the other hand, taxes resources at the wellhead, ensuring that all companies pay for the resource they extract. Denniss also points out that a 25% gas export tax would unfairly exempt domestic gas stocks extracted from Commonwealth waters, while Saudi Arabia, Norway, and Qatar have successful royalty systems for their gas industries.",
  "summary": "Richard Denniss notes that the export revenue from Australia’ natural gas mostly goes to foreign shareholders.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "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."
}