Beetaloo Sub-basin

Onshore gas resources are located on land across Australia, contained within complex underground rock formations.  

Visit the Northern Territory Government’s website to discover more about onshore gas.  

In the Northern Territory, onshore gas occurs in two forms: 

• Conventional gas accumulates in porous, permeable rocks where it can be effectively produced using a limited number of wells and naturally occurring reservoir pressure. 

• Unconventional gas is retained within low‑porosity, low‑permeability source rocks such as coal and shale, requiring techniques like hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling to enable extraction. 

Visit the Northern Territory Government’s website to learn more.  

The Beetaloo Sub-basin, located approximately 500 kilometres southeast of Darwin, is recognised as one of the largest and most significant shale gas reserves globally, with an estimated 500 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of discovered and prospective gas resources.   

Visit the Northern Territory Government’s forecast of the social and economic benefits the Beetaloo Sub-basin could deliver. 

Shale gas is mainly methane that is trapped within clay-rich sedimentary rock at depths greater than 1,500 metres. 

Click the links below to learn more about the extraction of shale gas and hydraulic fracturing – a tightly regulated process in the Northern Territory, with specific controls designed to protect groundwater and surface waters. 

Australian Energy Producers Hydraulic Fracturing Fact Sheet  

Northern Territory Government website