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“We confirm a majority of eligible employees have cast their vote and the proposed agreement has not been endorsed,” a spokesman for Inpex told LNG Prime on Friday.
He said that Inpex would continue to “actively engage in the bargaining process in good faith and work collaboratively to address feedback from our workforce.”
“Inpex remains focused on maintaining safe operations at Ichthys LNG, reaching a fair and equitable agreement with employees – and importantly, ensuring reliable energy supply to our key trading partners in the Asia-Pacific region amid disruption to global energy markets,” the spokesman said.
Launched in October 2025, the process has involved extensive engagement from Inpex employees, bargaining representatives, and unions.
Inpex issued the proposed enterprise agreement to employees for their consideration, ahead of a formal ballot in accordance with the Fair Work Act.
The company said that the proposed enterprise agreement offer is “fair and competitive” and it “maintains alignment of our employment conditions with the external market and meets or exceeds peer conditions in several areas.”
With the workers rejecting the agreement, this would likely result in protected industrial action.
The Offshore Alliance, which includes the Maritime Union of Australia and Australian Workers’ Union, said in a social media post that OA/AWU/ETU members across Inpex’s offshore and LNG facilities would vote next week on protected industrial action.
Ichthys LNG
Last year, Ichthys LNG accounted for 8 percent of both Japan and Taiwan’s respective LNG import volumes, delivered via long-term sales and purchase agreements, according to Inpex.
The facility shipped 112 LNG cargoes in 2025, and expects to ship 120 cargoes this year.
It currently features two trains, but Inpex previously announced plans to build the third liquefaction train.
Ichthys LNG is a joint venture between operator Inpex and major partner TotalEnergies.
In 2024, Inpex also purchased a small stake in Ichthys LNG from compatriot Tokyo Gas to boost its stake from 66.245 percent to 67.82 percent.
Besides TotalEnergies, other partners in the Ichthys project include Australian units of CPC, Osaka Gas, Kansai Electric Power, Jera, and Toho Gas.
Natural gas arrives to the LNG plant at Bladin Point, near Darwin, from the giant Ichthys field offshore Western Australia via an 890-kilometer-long export pipeline.