Woodside natural gas project unit paused after Greenpeace protest off W.Aus

Woodside said operations remained paused on Sunday at a floating production unit, part of its $12.5 billion Scarborough natural gas project off the coast of Western Australia, due to a Greenpeace protest at the platform.



Two activists from the environmental advocacy group slept overnight on the semi-submersible unit, located around 375 km off the state's northwest coast, in the protest that started on Saturday, Greenpeace said.



"Temporary hanging tents" were set up on the unit and the activists would "occupy the platform for as long as possible," Greenpeace said.



The group is concerned about the potential impact of Woodside's proposed Browse project on Scott Reef, a remote coral system and foraging area for the endangered pygmy blue whale. Woodside has said it expects no physical contact with the reef above the 75-metre water depth.



A Woodside spokesperson said "operations at the Scarborough FPU remain safely paused" on Sunday, a day after temporarily halting pre-commissioning activities as a result of the "unauthorised access".