<
https://reneweconomy.com.au/meet-the-people-behind-the-latest-gas-lobby-group-claiming-to-educate-and-inform-consumers/>
"A fracking executive, a former New South Wales Liberal politician and a
libertarian lobbyist are behind a new gas advocacy group claiming to represent
“households, industries and producers across the nation.”
The group calling itself “Australians For Natural Gas” appeared in January this
year ahead of the upcoming federal election with a website featuring glossy
images of farmers, chefs cooking and bar staff serving drinks alongside
information about the industry.
A vision statement published to the website outlines how the group plans to
engage in pro-gas activism.
It says its goals are to “educate and inform” by raising “public awareness
about natural gas’s critical role in powering homes, supporting jobs, driving
economic growth and keeping the price of goods and services low”, to “give
Australians a voice” and “drive unified action”.
The website describes the group as “a not-for-profit organisation representing
the interests of Aussie households, industries, and producers.”
Company documents list the group’s directors as Joel Lynn Riddle, Nathaniel
Gerard Smith and libertarian lobbyist Lyndal Anne Maloney. Riddle is also
listed as company secretary.
Joel Riddle, managing director and CEO of Tamboran Resources, recently pitched
the Trump administration on a $8 billion gas-powered outback datacentre.
The US-owned company is attempting to open the Beetaloo Basin in the Northern
Territory to fracking where it has been developing its Shenandoah South pilot
project.
Tamboran donated $28,000 to NT Labor ahead of the Territory election in 2024
and recruited former Chief Minister Nicole Manison as vice-president of
government relations and public affairs after she retired from politics that
year.
The company also has strong ties to the Trump administration. Before his
appointment, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright served as CEO of Liberty Energy,
a company with a $15.2m equity stake in Tamboran.
Wright, who says the world needs more planet-heating fossil fuels, told the
2025 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in the US that he was
“thrilled to work for Donald J Trump” and defended oil, gas and coal production
by blaming attempts to address climate change for driving up energy prices and
holding back the economy.
Renew Economy attempted to contact Tamboran Resources and Riddle through a
company representative but did not receive a response by publication."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
