Unions have set a mid-May deadline for negotiations with gas giant Inpex after hundreds of workers on the Ichthys export operation voted to strike. The Offshore Alliance, a coalition of the Australian Workers' Union and the Maritime Union of Australia, has given the company until May 15 to reach a full agreement before protected industrial action begins.
Background on the Ichthys project
Ichthys extracts gas from massive fields off Western Australia's Kimberley coast and pipes the fuel hundreds of kilometres to Darwin, where it is processed and shipped overseas. The Tokyo-based company generated approximately $7 billion of revenue in Australia in 2024, the latest available data, and owns 68 per cent of the Ichthys project.
Strike vote and potential impact
More than 400 workers from the Offshore Alliance voted overwhelmingly to strike late last week. The proposed industrial action would impact offshore facilities and the Darwin export plant. However, strikes will not begin until the union lodges notice of industrial action with Inpex.
In a social media post on Sunday, the Offshore Alliance pledged to hold off for three weeks, stating: "We made more progress in the Fair Work Commission compulsory conference last week than we did in six months of dysfunctional enterprise bargaining negotiations with Inpex." The union added that it would continue with Fair Work Commission-facilitated negotiations until May 15, with a clear understanding that Inpex would receive notice of protected industrial action at that point if no full agreement is reached. The union had previously signalled strikes could start on May 3.
Company response
An Inpex spokeswoman confirmed that the company had not received notice of action, which would trigger the strike. "Inpex continues to actively engage in the bargaining process in good faith and work collaboratively to address feedback from our workforce," she said. "Inpex remains focused on maintaining safe operations at Ichthys LNG, reaching a fair and equitable agreement with employees, and importantly, ensuring reliable energy supply to our key trading partners in the Indo-Pacific region amid disruption to global energy markets."
Broader context
This development makes Inpex the latest energy exporter to face the threat of industrial action. Woodside Energy narrowly averted a dispute in 2023, while workers downed tools at both Chevron and Shell. Earlier this month, Inpex promised to make one cargo of condensate, which can be used to produce petrol, preferentially available to Australian buyers.
