Santos is ready to ship the first cargo from its $6.1 billion Barossa gas project in the next few days. Currently loaded at Darwin LNG, the cargo will be delivered to the Sakai terminal in Japan.
Connection failures in two feeder pipelines to the Darwin LNG plant that caused a 2-month delay – but Santos confirmed those issues have now been fully repaired and commissioning has resumed.
“The six-well drilling program in the Barossa gas field was successfully completed and all six wells have been tested. All wells have intersected excellent reservoir quality with average individual well potential deliverability of about 300 million standard cubic feet per day,” Santos said in an investors update.
LNG production has started collowing completion of the Darwin LNG life extension project, with Santos confirming the cool down of the LNG train and storage tank are well underway.
First cargo to set sail before end of January
The first cargo, sold on a delivered ex-ship basis, is expected to leave the Darwin LNG terminal before the end of January, is understood to have been sold to a northeast Asian buyer.
The name of the buyer was not disclosed, though the shipment was awarded in a tender that closed earlier this month.
Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher said the first cargo represents “a major step forward” for the company’s northern Australia portfolio and underscores its commitment to supplying reliable gas to Asia’s key energy customers.
Analysts expect the Barossa’s start-up could ease supply tightness in Asia-Pacific spot markets, where prices stayed elevated as cold winter weather persists across key LNG markets including Japan and South Korea.
Sales up 15% in Q4-2025 amid rising production
In its fourth quarter earnings report, published today, Santos said sales volumes reached 24.8 million barrels of oil equivalent for the fourth quarter, up 15 per cent on the prior quarter.
Production increased 22.3 million barrels of oil equivalent for the fourth quarter, a 5 percent rise quarter-on-quarter.
Free cash flow from operations came in at around $380 million, up 30 per cent on the prior quarter. (January 22, 2026, Source: https://lngjournal.com/index.php/latest-news-mainmenu-47/item/115362-santos-about-to-ship-first-lng-cargo-from-barossa-field)
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