Business & Economy

Escalating labor dispute at Australia Chevron threatens to disrupt global LNG supply

Sydney, Australia, Sep 5 (EFE).- A union representing Chevron workers on Tuesday announced a total strike for two weeks at two liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects of the American oil company in Australia, in an escalation of a labor dispute that threatens to disrupt the global supply of this resource.

The total strikes will begin on Sep. 14 at Chevron’s Gorgon and Wheatstone facilities, located in the Western Australia region, Offshore Alliance, a partnership between the AWU (Australian Workers’ Union) and the Maritime Union of Australia, said on its Facebook page.

The unions, which are demanding better working conditions, pay increases and training for the staff, announced the strike “in response to Chevron’s duplicitious claim that our EBA negotiations are ‘intractable.’”

“Our bargaining claims will look more and more reasonable as Chevron’s Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG exports dry up,” said Offshore Alliance, which began mediation talks with Chevron hosted by the Fair Work Commission (FWC), Australia’s industrial arbitrator, on Monday.

Last week, Offshore Alliance, which is made up of 500 members, had announced rolling strikes starting from Sep. 7.

Strikes at the Gorgon and Wheatstone LNG projects, which produce more than 7 percent of the world’s liquefied natural gas, could affect European markets struggling to replace Russian gas imports, as well as mining and industrial production in Western Australia, the Australian Financial Review newspaper reported Tuesday.

A Chevron spokesperson said that the company will “continue to take steps to maintain safe and reliable operations in the event of disruption at our facilities,” according to the newspaper. EFE

wat/pd

Related Articles

Back to top button