{"id":823994,"date":"2026-07-26T01:29:25","date_gmt":"2026-07-26T01:29:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/823994\/"},"modified":"2026-07-26T01:29:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-26T01:29:25","slug":"idle-aging-oil-platform-raises-alarm-for-dongaras-fishers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/823994\/","title":{"rendered":"Idle, aging oil platform raises alarm for Dongara’s fishers"},"content":{"rendered":"

An abandoned oil drilling rig off the coast of Western Australia’s Midwest is at the centre of a storm about who pays the clean-up bill after the company that owned it went into administration.<\/p>\n

Local fishermen and conservation groups are demanding the federal government take action over the Cliff Head oil platform before crayfishing grounds are put at risk.<\/p>\n

Pilot Energy was working with Triangle Energy to repurpose the rig, which sits 11 kilometres off the coast of Dongara, about 350 kilometres north of Perth.<\/p>\n

But in July both companies, which had a combined value of about $9 million, went bust, leaving a decommissioning bill of $200 million.<\/p>\n

\"Mike<\/p>\n

Cray fisher Mike Butcher worries what will now happen to the unused Cliff Head platform sitting idly at sea. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

Platform ‘mothballed’<\/p>\n

Dongara cray fisherman Michael Butcher said connection to the coast was one of the most sacred things to residents.<\/p>\n

“I’d say fishing is pretty much the most important thing in Dongara, or just the ocean in general,” he said.<\/p>\n

“It’s the main industry in town. [The ocean] is definitely part of our culture.”<\/p>\n

Mr Butcher, who fishes near the rig regularly, said he had not noticed anyone maintaining the platform recently.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

According to local fishers, the aging, ocean-worn Cliff Head platform is falling into neglect. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

“There’s no-one coming out here on a daily basis checking on it [the platform],” he said.<\/p>\n

“You can see for yourself, it’s not been very loved or well maintained.<\/p>\n

“It’s just been mothballed.”<\/p>\n

\"Jonathan<\/p>\n

Lobster fisher Jonathon Buist, or “Moggy” as he’s locally called. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

Fellow cray fisherman Jonathon “Moggy” Buist said the area around the platform was home to an “abundance” of marine life and it was important to local businesses that the rig was not left to degrade in the ocean.<\/p>\n

“There’s an abundance of fish life and caves that rock lobsters live in [near the platform] so it’s a really important part of our fishery,” Mr Buist said.<\/p>\n

“The actual rig doesn’t bother me too much because it’s a bit of a navigation aid for us, but it’s the pipework underneath we’d like to [keep] tidy.”\"Hands<\/p>\n

Crayfish or western rock lobsters can be found in caves near the Cliff Head oil platform. (ABC News: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

‘Canary in the coalmine’<\/p>\n

In a written statement, federal Resources Minister Madeline King said taxpayers were not expected to foot the decommissioning bill and if needed it would extend an emergency sector-wide levy.<\/p>\n

“Titleholders are obligated by Australian law to pay all costs associated with decommissioning,” she said.<\/p>\n

“In the event of companies being unable to pay I will have no hesitation in extending the Northern Endeavor levy<\/a> or taking other measures to cover all costs of decommissioning.<\/p>\n

“Under no circumstances will taxpayers be left on the hook.”\"With<\/p>\n

The Cliff Head platform sits abandoned following the voluntary administration of operators Triangle Energy and Pilot Energy. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

Ms King also said the safety regulator would ensure protections were in place for the marine environment.<\/p>\n

“The offshore safety regulator has taken a number of steps to ensure the Cliff Head facility does not pose an immediate threat to the marine environment,” she said.<\/p>\n

But Conservation Council of WA executive director Matt Roberts said the uncertainty exposed vulnerabilities in the decommissioning system.<\/p>\n

“We have $60 billion worth of infrastructure off the coast of WA and this is that canary in the coal mine moment that indicates what else is at risk out there,” he said.<\/p>\n

“They’ve [the federal government] talked about having a financial assurances regime. When is that going to be passed and enforced?”<\/p>\n

\"Matt<\/p>\n

CCWA’s Matt Roberts says better systems need to be in place for decommissioning infrastructure at sea. (ABC News: Courtney Withers)<\/p>\n

Concern for other projects<\/p>\n

Decommissioning the Cliff Head oil platform was not the only question front of mind for fishers.<\/p>\n

Before the company fell into voluntary administration, protests began to stop Pilot Energy testing the surrounding sea bed, home to valuable rock lobster, for oil and gas reserves.<\/p>\n

“I’m part of the Dongara against seismic blasting group and that involves a range of people \u2026 that are worried about the local environment,” Mr Butcher said.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Dongara community members are opposing seismic testing and potential damage to the valuable rock lobster fishery. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

The lobby group started in 2025 after Pilot Energy was approved to begin its Eureka 3D Marine Seismic Survey.<\/p>\n

Seismic blasting involves releasing a bubble of compressed air that produces low-frequency noise, penetrating rock layers below the surface.<\/p>\n

The project, which was set to begin in February this year, was delayed for 12 months after Pilot failed to secure a suitable survey vessel.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

With Pilot Energy entering administration, Dongara residents are hoping plans for offshore seismic testing will be abandoned. (ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt: Chris Lewis)<\/p>\n

Mr Butcher said fishers had been left in the lurch wondering if a project of similar calibre could return.<\/p>\n

“We haven’t had any consultation from government, [the] National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Enviromental Management Authority, nothing really regarding where we’re going in the future,” he said.<\/p>\n

“But we’ve got to catch fish so we go to work.”<\/p>\n

Pilot Energy administrators Cor Cordis said in a written statement they had begun assessing the rig’s future.<\/p>\n

“We recognise the strategic importance of the Cliff Head project and will work constructively with all stakeholders \u2026 as we assess all the available pathways,” they said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"An abandoned oil drilling rig off the coast of Western Australia’s Midwest is at the centre of a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":823995,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[64,63,99,397977,397982,397978,397980,397981,397975,397976,45,397979],"class_list":["post-823994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-business","tag-cliff-head-oil-platform","tag-decommissioning-oil-platform","tag-degrading-infrastructure","tag-fisherman-concerned","tag-fishing-industry-impacts","tag-pilot-energy-voluntary-administration","tag-triangle-energy-calls-in-administrators","tag-wa-news","tag-what-is-seismic-blasting"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/823994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=823994"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/823994\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/823995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=823994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=823994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=823994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}