Amplitude Energy Wins 25% Stake in Queensland’s Taroom Trough as Third Portfolio Leg
Key Takeaways
- The Queensland Government has awarded petroleum tenement PLR2026-1-7 to the Taroom Joint Venture, with Amplitude Energy holding a 25% interest via its wholly owned subsidiary Cooper Energy (VO) Pty Ltd.
- The 305km² tenement sits on the eastern flank of the Taroom Trough between Chinchilla and Roma, adjacent to the Canyon Project currently under appraisal — providing early geological read-through before significant capital is committed.
- All four JV partners hold equal 25% stakes, with Xstate Resources serving as operator; the initial work commitment covers seismic processing and appraisal activities through to FY29.
- Management has framed the Taroom JV as a prospective "third leg" that adds liquids optionality and global pricing exposure to complement Amplitude's existing southeast domestic gas focus.
- The Taroom entry is explicitly additive to Amplitude's near-term priorities, which remain anchored by the East Coast Supply Project — a $190–210 million net development with 35 PJ already contracted to EnergyAustralia and AGL.
Amplitude Energy enters Taroom Trough via Queensland government land release
The Queensland Government has awarded petroleum land release tender PLR2026-1-7 to the Taroom Joint Venture, with Amplitude Energy holding a 25% interest via its wholly owned subsidiary Cooper Energy (VO) Pty Ltd. The award brings the company into an emerging onshore Queensland basin alongside three equal JV partners.
All four JV participants hold equal 25% stakes: Amplitude Energy, Beetaloo Energy, Eastern States Energy, and Xstate Resources. Xstate Resources will serve as operator during initial commitment appraisal activities, drawing on their established position in the area.
The tenement covers approximately 305km² on the eastern flank of the Taroom Trough, located between Chinchilla and Roma on the Western Downs, and forms part of the broader Bowen-Surat Basin. The announcement describes the acreage as highly prospective, sitting adjacent to a prolific and established hydrocarbon province with nearby pipeline infrastructure and services already in place.
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Why the Taroom Trough matters for energy investors
The Taroom Trough is an emerging onshore Queensland basin situated within the broader Bowen-Surat system. Its significance lies in what sits underground: stacked Permian reservoir intervals, meaning multiple layers of ancient rock formations from the Permian geological period, each capable of holding hydrocarbons at different depths.
This stacking is what makes the basin attractive from an unconventional plays perspective. An unconventional play refers to oil and gas extracted from rock formations that require stimulation techniques rather than flowing freely, similar to the shale and tight gas developments common in North America. The company’s announcement draws a direct comparison to large unconventional plays in the USA and Canada producing at several PJ (petajoules) per day, though this is management’s stated analogy rather than a certified resource comparison.
What makes this more than a blank-slate exploration bet is the infrastructure and regulatory context already surrounding the area. Nearby pipeline infrastructure and services reduce the commercialisation burden typically associated with early-stage onshore exploration. The Queensland Coordinator-General’s Taroom Trough Development Plan also provides streamlined regulatory pathways and whole-of-basin coordination, cutting through the bureaucratic friction that commonly slows exploration projects in new basins.
What has been found nearby
Recent exploration activity across the broader Taroom Trough has already returned encouraging results:
- Gas discovered
- Associated liquids identified
- Light crude oil identified
PLR2026-1-7 sits adjacent to, and along trend with, the Canyon Project, which is currently being appraised. That adjacency provides meaningful geological read-through, giving the JV early directional data before committing significant capital of its own.
A potential third leg for Amplitude’s portfolio
Management has framed the Taroom JV as a prospective “third leg” alongside Amplitude’s existing offshore Otway and Gippsland operations and its Cooper Basin oil production. The complementary logic is straightforward: onshore Queensland exposure adds liquids optionality and global pricing exposure, which balances the company’s existing southeast domestic gas focus.
The initial work commitment runs to FY29 and encompasses seismic processing and appraisal activities. This represents a modest capital outlay spread over several years rather than a major near-term funding commitment.
Management was clear that this opportunity is additive to, not a distraction from, the core near-term agenda.
Jane Norman, Managing Director & CEO, Amplitude Energy
“Our participation [in] the Taroom Joint Venture allows us to test the long-term potential of this basin for a modest capital commitment over the next few years… With vast resource running room, the Taroom Trough could, in time, represent an attractive third leg to Amplitude Energy’s portfolio — balancing our offshore operations in southern domestic markets while providing greater liquids and global pricing exposure, in addition to domestic gas supply.”
| Detail | Particulars |
|---|---|
| Tenement | PLR2026-1-7 |
| Area | ~305km² |
| Amplitude Interest | 25% (via Cooper Energy (VO) Pty Ltd) |
| JV Partners | Beetaloo Energy (25%), Eastern States Energy (25%), Xstate Resources (25%) |
| Operator | Xstate Resources |
| Work Commitment Period | To FY29 (seismic processing and appraisal) |
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What’s next for Amplitude Energy
With the Taroom JV now formalised, Amplitude’s near-term priorities remain anchored in its existing operations:
- Advancing the East Coast Supply Project (ECSP) on time and on budget
- Maximising production through existing Otway and Gippsland offshore infrastructure
- Seismic processing and appraisal activities under the Taroom JV through to FY29
The East Coast Supply Project, which reached Final Investment Decision in late 2026 with $190-210 million in net development costs and 35 PJ of gas already contracted to EnergyAustralia and AGL, anchors the near-term revenue case that makes the longer-dated Taroom optionality viable without stretching the balance sheet.
The portfolio Amplitude is building pairs near-term production and the ECSP development with longer-dated exploration optionality in Queensland. As management’s own language makes clear, the Taroom Trough could, in time, represent meaningful upside — but the conditional framing is deliberate, and the near-term investment commitment remains modest.
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