# Gas company seeks approval for Kimberley project

> Buru Energy refers its Rafael conventional gas project to Western Australia's EPA, claiming it could power the Kimberley region by 2029.
- Title: Gas company seeks approval for Kimberley project · Abc
- Summary: Buru Energy refers its Rafael conventional gas project to Western Australia's EPA, claiming it could power the Kimberley region by 2029. Buru Energy…
- Keywords: buru energy, rafael project, kimberley, canning basin, conventional gas, environmental protection authority, fracking, western australia, news, politics, Gas, company
- Source: Abc — https://abc.net.au/news/2026-10-12/conventional-gas-project-could-meet-local-energy-demand/107247116
- Published: 2026-10-11T22:05:36+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: buru energy, rafael project, kimberley, canning basin, conventional gas, environmental protection authority, fracking, western australia, news, politics
## Buru Energy seeks EPA review
Buru Energy referred its Rafael conventional gas project to Western Australia's Environmental Protection Authority for assessment in early October.
## Project location and scope
The facility will be located in the Kimberley's Canning Basin about eighty five kilometres south of Derby, processing conventional gas from two co-located production wells.
## What conventional gas means
Conventional gas is natural gas extracted using simple drilling and pumping methods, as opposed to unconventional extraction methods like hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
## Buru's energy supply claim
Buru executive chairman David Maxwell said Rafael would supply up to three hundred tonnes of Liquefied Natural Gas per day, equivalent to about sixteen or seventeen terajoules of energy.
## Meeting Kimberley's power needs
The Kimberley uses between six and thirteen terajoules per day for power generation. Maxwell said Rafael has capacity to supply one hundred percent of the region's gas demand.

> We have the capacity to supply 100 per cent of the Kimberley's gas demand.
## Environmentalists fear fracking link
Environs Kimberley executive director Martin Pritchard said Rafael could be a Trojan horse for fracking, citing Buru's past statements to the ASX about future fracking intentions.

> could be a Trojan horse for fracking
## Buru rejects fracking claims
David Maxwell rejected the accusation, saying Rafael has nothing to do with fracking and that any future fracking would require a separate EPA referral and approval process.

> It's got nothing to do with fracking at all.
## Timeline and next steps
Buru expects a decision from the EPA by the end of the year and hopes to produce the first gas by early twenty twenty-nine.
## Key takeaway

Buru Energy submitted its Rafael conventional gas project for EPA review, saying it could supply all the Kimberley's gas demand by early 2029, though environmentalists worry it could enable future fracking.