Chevron Corp decided to start withdrawing contract workers from the Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Australia on Saturday after workers at two other plants went on strike. The two sides are in disagreement over job security, pay, overtime rules, and transfers between facilities.
“Chevron chartered a special flight this morning to Barrow Island to evacuate 50 blue and white collar contract crew off the Gorgon Project,” union coalition Offshore Alliance announced on social media on Saturday.
The strikes could have a major impact on the LNG market, with Chevron’s affected plants supplying approximately 5% of global LNG shipments. Currently, Australia is the world’s biggest LNG exporter, mostly serving the Asian market.
Although wage disputes at Chevron’s Gorgon and Wheatstone operations have driven British and European gas prices upwards, traders expect Australian supply halts to intensify competition from other sources.