This year’s Australian Energy Producers (AEP) Conference and Exhibition 2026 in Adelaide brought industry leaders together to examine the challenges and opportunities shaping Australia’s evolving energy future amid rising global energy demand, geopolitical uncertainty, and major policy and investment decisions.
Held under the definitive theme “Energy Evolved,” the event featured industry panels and technical forums that explored the crucial role of gas infrastructure, policy frameworks, and investment certainty in supporting reliable and competitive energy markets.
Verbrec’s Role
Verbrec played a particularly key role in this year’s event, proudly sponsoring the Technical & Business Program.
Erik Vandenberg, our General Manager Growth & Energy Transition, chaired the thought-provoking session, “Investing in the Next Chapter of Gas”, on the final day of the three-day conference.
The session explored how future gas investments will need to balance developing unconventional reserves, reshaping portfolios for lower carbon intensity, backfilling LNG capacity, and integrating renewable energy with gas generation to support energy security, maintain competitiveness, and unlock new revenue opportunities.
Five industry experts took to the stage during the session to explore the future of gas in Australia. Session highlights included:
- Australia’s LNG plants face a looming upstream supply shortfall as foundation fields deplete. Backfilling existing infrastructure offers a highly capital-efficient, lower-risk solution to maintain global competitiveness.
- Developing unconventional gas reserves will be critical to addressing future supply shortfalls, although commercial viability and investment certainty remain key challenges for the sector.
- The potential of utilising carbon intensity management as a core performance metric for energy companies needs to be unlocked.
- Commercially integrated renewable-gas solutions could be the way forward for the energy transition. When done right, they can ensure reliability, support decarbonisation, and unlock new value streams for energy producers.
Industry callouts
The three-day event covered a range of energy-relevant topics, underpinned by the common goal of supplying affordable, reliable energy to customers in Australia and the region, while also delivering real emissions reductions across the economy.
Energy security, affordability and resilience dominated discussions on day one. AEP Chair Cecile Wake spoke to the key topics in her closing statement at the forefront of the conference:
“Now, more than ever, is the time to get behind Australia’s oil and gas industry, to unlock the potential of our abundant natural resources, and ensure that future Australian generations benefit from the jobs, economic return and energy security that our industry is well placed to deliver.”
Ms Wake highlighted the need to avoid the “false choice” between a domestic gas market and an LNG industry, and instead, redirect strategies to achieve both.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas addressed the conference on day two of the conference with the key message: gas is critical to SA’s energy security and industrial future.
A gas-fired generation is set to lead the charge for Australia’s renewable future, according to the Premier, who pointed to the need for additional gas supply to support the state’s industrial ambitions.
Together, these discussions reflected a broader industry consensus that natural gas will continue to play a critical role in supporting grid stability, industrial growth and long-term energy security as Australia progresses through a complex energy transition.
More key takeaways:
- Australia needs to safeguard its energy security amid the structural shift in the market by solidifying our credibility as a predictable long-term destination for global capital as a trading partner.
- Australia is well-placed to seize the economic opportunities of growing energy demand – especially for natural gas, thanks to our abundant domestic resources.
- The oil and gas sector is booming, contributing a record $21.9 billion in taxes and state royalties last year, more than $100 billion annually to the Australian economy, and around 215,000 supported jobs.
The conversations throughout AEP 2026 reinforced that long-term investment confidence, policy certainty and reliable infrastructure will be critical to maintaining Australia’s competitiveness in evolving global energy markets.
From Verbrec’s perspective, evolving gas infrastructure will continue to play an important role in supporting energy security today while enabling practical pathways toward a lower-emissions future, as outlined through our approach to the Gas Transition.
Looking forward
Industry experts are looking strongly towards a gas-fired future. Amid a global energy crisis, now is the time to back Australia’s oil and gas industry and unlock the full potential of natural resources for future generations.
But the key is longevity, affordability, domestic security, and resilience to move towards a stronger energy future.
