Moomba, South Australia
Encyclopedia
Moomba is a Santos
-owned gas exploration and processing town
(perhaps better described as a company town
) located in the Cooper
and Eromanga
Basins, in central Australia
, approximately 770 kilometres north of Adelaide
.
There are a number of partners and contractors on site including O&G Solutions, Transfield Services
, OneSteel
, Origin Energy
, Diversified Construction and SAGE Automation.
which runs through northeastern South Australia
and into southwestern Queensland
. The settlement is located on a low-lying plain amongst sand dunes at very little height above sea level. Several hundred kilometres to the southwest lies Lake Eyre
which is in fact below sea level.
Annual mean rainfall average is 206.3 millimetres, even though Moomba sits just on the edge of a rainfall region that has the lowest average rainfall in South Australia (a region encompassing Marree and Lake Eyre
) . January brings the most rain, with July the least, meaning rainfall patterns are determined more by tropical systems in the summer wet season / winter dry season cycles than the winter rainfall cycles more common in the southern parts of South Australia
.
" residents who are, largely, Santos employees. Scheduled Services are operated by Cobham Aviation Services Australia, flying passengers daily to and from Adelaide. Members of the public are not able to fly to Moomba; only employees, contractors and authorised visitors are able to visit.
The New South Wales motoring body, NRMA
warns travellers of the absence of public facilities at Moomba. It states:
The Royal Flying Doctor Service provides health services for Moomba and Ballera workers.
An explosion occurred at the gas plant in January 2004 which made national headlines and caused a costly temporary gas shortage for Santos Ltd .
, an arrangement agreed to in 1991 and the project completed in 1993.
A separate 659 kilometre pipeline runs southwest to Port Bonython
, South Australia for overseas export.
A similar gas pipeline to Sydney
was completed in 1976, stretching over 1,160 kilometres, with an ethane
pipeline along the same route to Sydney
completed in 1996 .
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics
:
Due to an expected peak in availability of gas from Moomba's gas fields in 2016, in June 2007 gas pipeline owner Epic Energy announced moves to link the Moomba pipeline to gas resources in southwest Queensland ,.
Santos Ltd.
Santos Ltd. is a large Australian oil and gas exploration company. Its name is an acronym for South Australia Northern Territory Oil Search.-Operations:...
-owned gas exploration and processing town
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
(perhaps better described as a company town
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
) located in the Cooper
Cooper Basin
The Cooper Basin is a sedimentary geological basin in Australia. The basin is located mainly in the north-east part of South Australia and extends into south-west Queensland. It is named after the Cooper Creek which is an ephemeral river that runs into Lake Eyre. Part of the Cooper Basin is...
and Eromanga
Eromanga Basin
The Eromanga Basin is a large Mesozoic sedimentary basin in central and northern Australia. It covers parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia, and New South Wales, and is a major component of the Great Artesian Basin...
Basins, in central Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, approximately 770 kilometres north of Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
.
There are a number of partners and contractors on site including O&G Solutions, Transfield Services
Transfield Services
Transfield Services Limited is an Australian publicly listed corporation providing operations and maintenance, asset management, project and capital management outsourcing and infrastructure development services to the resources and industrial, infrastructure services and property and facilities...
, OneSteel
OneSteel
OneSteel is an Australian-based mining, ore processing and steel manufacturing company specialising in steel-long products for the construction, mining, transport and agricultural industries...
, Origin Energy
Origin Energy
-History:Origin Energy was formed in February 2000, as a result of a demerger from the Australian conglomerate Boral Limited, in which the energy business was removed from the building and construction materials business to form the new company....
, Diversified Construction and SAGE Automation.
Geography
Moomba is situated on the Strzelecki TrackStrzelecki Track
The Strzelecki Track is an outback track in South Australia, mostly unsealed but with a few short sealed sections to facilitate overtaking, linking Innamincka to Lyndhurst...
which runs through northeastern South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
and into southwestern Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. The settlement is located on a low-lying plain amongst sand dunes at very little height above sea level. Several hundred kilometres to the southwest lies Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre is the lowest point in Australia, at approximately below sea level, and, on the rare occasions that it fills, it is the largest lake in Australia and 18th largest in the world...
which is in fact below sea level.
Climate
Moomba experiences a mean maximum temperature of 37.5 degrees Celsius in the hottest month of the year, January, with overnight mean minimum temperatures of 23.3 degrees. July is the coldest month, in winter, with 19.2 degrees mean maximum temperature and 6.3 mean minimum temperature.Annual mean rainfall average is 206.3 millimetres, even though Moomba sits just on the edge of a rainfall region that has the lowest average rainfall in South Australia (a region encompassing Marree and Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre is the lowest point in Australia, at approximately below sea level, and, on the rare occasions that it fills, it is the largest lake in Australia and 18th largest in the world...
) . January brings the most rain, with July the least, meaning rainfall patterns are determined more by tropical systems in the summer wet season / winter dry season cycles than the winter rainfall cycles more common in the southern parts of South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
.
Population
Santos Ltd employs some 1,200 people who work at Moomba and within the rest of the Cooper Basin (including Ballera in South-West Queensland). All employees work on a fly in-fly out roster basis; there is no permanent resident population in Moomba.Facilities
Moomba has a sealed airstrip and 'camp' accommodation for its "fly-in, fly-outFly-in fly-out
Fly-in fly-out is a method of employing people in remote areas. It is often abbreviated to FIFO when referring to employment status. This is common in large mining states in Australia...
" residents who are, largely, Santos employees. Scheduled Services are operated by Cobham Aviation Services Australia, flying passengers daily to and from Adelaide. Members of the public are not able to fly to Moomba; only employees, contractors and authorised visitors are able to visit.
The New South Wales motoring body, NRMA
NRMA
NRMA refers to either of two historically related Australian companies:*The National Roads and Motorists' Association, known as NRMA Motoring and Services, is a member-owned mutual organisation offering , motoring advice and other services in New South Wales and the Australian Capital...
warns travellers of the absence of public facilities at Moomba. It states:
Note that the Moomba plant and field operations are closed to the public and there are no facilities, supplies or accommodation available for travellershttp://www.mynrma.com.au/cps/rde/xchg/mynrma/hs.xsl/Strzelecki_Track.htm.
The Royal Flying Doctor Service provides health services for Moomba and Ballera workers.
History
Moomba was established in the 1960s and 70s after discovery of gas and, later, oil in the region .An explosion occurred at the gas plant in January 2004 which made national headlines and caused a costly temporary gas shortage for Santos Ltd .
Gas
A liquefied gas pipeline (commenced in 1969) runs 832 kilometres to deliver natural gas extracted from Moomba to Adelaide . This same pipeline is also used to deliver gas from QueenslandQueensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, an arrangement agreed to in 1991 and the project completed in 1993.
A separate 659 kilometre pipeline runs southwest to Port Bonython
Port Bonython
Port Bonython is a deepwater port at the head of Spencer Gulf, 20 km eastnortheast of Whyalla. It is capable of taking Capesize ships. It was established in 1982 and named after John Bonython, the founding chairman of Santos Ltd.-Overview:...
, South Australia for overseas export.
A similar gas pipeline to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
was completed in 1976, stretching over 1,160 kilometres, with an ethane
Ethane
Ethane is a chemical compound with chemical formula C2H6. It is the only two-carbon alkane that is an aliphatic hydrocarbon. At standard temperature and pressure, ethane is a colorless, odorless gas....
pipeline along the same route to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
completed in 1996 .
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics
Australian Bureau of Statistics
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...
:
At Moomba the incoming raw gas stream initially has water and carbon dioxide removed. Next the liquids recovery plant extracts the valuable condensate, ethane and LPG from the gas stream. The resultant sales gas is then pipelined to the Sydney and Adelaide markets. The separated gas liquids as well as the stabilised crude oil from oil fields are directed into the liquids pipeline leading to the fractionation plant at Port Bonython on Spencer Gulf.
Due to an expected peak in availability of gas from Moomba's gas fields in 2016, in June 2007 gas pipeline owner Epic Energy announced moves to link the Moomba pipeline to gas resources in southwest Queensland ,.