indicated and 55 billion tons inferred). Victoria has 66.7 billion tons of
indicated reserves (12.2 billion tons saleable), and the remainder was in
the Saint Vincent Basin of South Australia. 
Petroleum and Natural Gas.—Australia's production of natural gas
increased
significantly in 1978, but crude petroleum output was only marginally higher.
Of the total, about 145 million barrels was from the Gippsland Basin (Bass
Strait) Victoria's offshore fields, 12 million barrels from the Barrow Island
field in Western Australia, and the balance from the declining Moonie and
Alton fields in the Surat Basin in Queensland. Production in 1979 was comparable,
with the Bass Strait the principle source. Production represented about 65%
of current domestic requirements, but with recent small discoveries and revised
estimates of reserves, this degree of selfsufficiency could be maintained
until the mid-1980's. 
Input of crude oil and other feedstock to Australian refineries totaled about
300 inillion barrels in 1978. Indigenous crude oil comprised about 65% of
this total; the balance was imported, mainly from the Middle East. 
The Commonwealth Government dropped the price fixing arrangement under which
domestic crude was sold at a price unrelated to world parity, and most Australian
crude was sold at import parity prices. This has provided an incentive to
intensify the search for new resources, and expenditures in 1979 were estimated
at $130 million. The number of exploration wells rose to 52, and a minimum
of 83 were planned for 1980. An additional bonus for the oil industry was
the opening up of the high potential offshore Exmouth Plateau for petroleum
exploration. In water depths up to 700 meters, the costs and technical problems
will exceed those encountered in most other Australian projects. 
The biggest news in development, however, remains the North West Shelf Natural
Gas Development Project in Western Australia. A consortium comprising the
BHP Co., Shell Oil Co., Woodside Petroleum Co., British Petroleum, and California
Asiatic Oil Co. was continuing a feasibility study that could lead to production
by 1984. The aim of the North West Shelf project is to produce gas and condensate
from the North Rankin field, pipe it to shore, and process it into pipeline-quality
gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and condensate suitable for markets in
Australia and abroad. In 1979, the 
 THE MINERAL INDUSTRY OF AUSTRALIA 115 
 
Federal Government approved the export of 55% of the current estimated reserves
from the project. Approximately 6.5 million tens of LNG could thus be exported
annually over a 20-year period. A contract has been signed between the consortium
and the Western Australian State Energy Commission for the sale of up to
10.5 million cubic meters of gas per day over a 20-year period. This would
be. delivered to customers in the southwest of the State through. a 1,300kilometer
long pipeline from Dampier 
Uranium—Australia is expected to become a major force in the world
uranium market within the next few years, when production is initiated in
the Northern Territory. After long delays owing to a ban on uranium mining
by the former Government, pressures from environmentalists, and problems
with aboriginal claims, a number of projects were moving ahead. However,
the Mary Kathleen Mine in Queensland was the only one in production in 1978
and 1979; 
Mary Kathleen Uranium Ltd. (MKU) produced 608 tons of U308 in 1978 and 800
tons in 1979. Those figures were significantly above the 1977 total of 420
tons. The rising production levels indicate that most of the difficulties
that beset the company in 1977 and early 1978 have been resolved. The installation
of new equipment in 1979 and the completion of $6 million worth of modifications
could lift the production rate even higher. MKU is an open pit mine in which
ore was mined by conventional drilling, blasting, loading, and hauling equipment.
The mine consisted of a series of benches cut into the hill slope, to a height
of 105 meters above the valley floor and extended to 60 meters below. The
ore was processed on site, and high-grade yellow cake was railed from the
mine to Brisbane and shipped to the United States, the Federal Republic of
Germany and Japan. 
In 1977, the Federal Government accepted the findings of an extensive public
inquiry and gave approval for uranium mining to proceed under stringent conditions
relating to export controls and safeguards. This decision aroused vehement
opposition, but the main cause of the delay was negotiations required by
provisions of the Aboriginal Land Right Act. Under this act, the aborigines
have the right to claim royalties and compensation for the use of tribal
lands, and each developer must conclude an agreement with the Northern Land
Council before any mining can proceed. Negotiations in 1978 led to an agreement
that