据普氏能源资讯悉尼1月3日消息 澳大利亚北部天然气管道运营商Jemena周四在一份声明中表示，连接北部地区和澳大利亚东部的北部天然气管道已经开始商业运营。

“缺失环节”首次将产气的北部领地与天然气消费的东部沿海各州连接起来，缓解了东海岸国内天然气市场的紧张局面，并使天然气管道与拟议中的进口液化天然气直接竞争。

这条耗资8亿澳元（合5.57亿美元）的北部天然气管道在2015年投入使用后，于2018年12月中旬竣工。该管道从北部的Tennant Creek一直延伸到昆士兰州的Isa山。Origin-ConocoPhillips的Australia Pacific LNG、Santos主导的Gladstone LNG和壳牌的Queensland Curtis LNG出口设施均以此为基础。

澳大利亚东海岸是该国三个大州的所在地即新南威尔士州、维多利亚州和昆士兰州，以及南澳大利亚州和塔斯马尼亚州，而这些地区近年来一直面临天然气短缺问题。

吴慧丹 摘译自 普氏能源资讯

原文如下：

Australia's Northern Gas Pipeline starts commercial operations

Australia's Northern Gas Pipeline linking the Northern Territory region with eastern Australia has started commercial operations, operator Jemena said in a statement Thursday.

The "missing link" connects the gas-producing Northern Territory to the gas-consuming eastern seaboard states for the first time, alleviating tight domestic gas markets on the east coast and putting pipeline natural gas in direct competition with proposed LNG imports.

Construction work on the A$800 million ($557 million) Northern Gas Pipeline was completed in mid-December 2018 after being commissioned in 2015. It runs from Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory to Mount Isa in Queensland -- the state where the Origin-ConocoPhillips Australia Pacific LNG, the Santos-led Gladstone LNG and Shell's Queensland Curtis LNG export facilities are based.

Australia's east coast is home to the country's three largest states: New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, as well as South Australia and Tasmania, and has been facing gas shortages in recent years.