Officials from an Australian union are set to initiate a strike against Chevron following overwhelming support for industrial action from LNG workers. The Offshore Alliance, a coalition of two unions, announced that a strike would be called "shortly" after workers at Chevron's Wheatstone offshore platform expressed unanimous backing for the action. This comes after workers at two other Chevron sites, Gorgon (15.6 million tonnes/year) and Wheatstone downstream onshore (8.9 million tonnes/year), demonstrated 99% support for striking last week.

The union is preparing to submit strike notices in the near future, revealing their determination to counter Chevron's parallel wage offer that bypasses union negotiations. The process for initiating strikes mandates that they can commence seven working days after obtaining worker approval, which could potentially start as early as 7 September. The strike period extends for 30 days, allowing the option for an extension if necessary.

While negotiations are ongoing, Chevron has not yet received formal notice of the impending strike. In response to the developments, Chevron stated, "We're aware Wheatstone platform employees have voted in support of industrial action as part of a ballot organised by their representatives."

Meanwhile, union officials successfully negotiated an agreement in principle to prevent a strike at Woodside's North West Shelf LNG, which boasts a capacity of 16.9 million tonnes per year. This achievement contributes to maintaining stability in the Australian LNG sector.

As the labor situation unfolds, Chevron's operations remain under scrutiny, and the potential strike poses implications for the LNG market at a time when Europe seeks alternative energy sources due to disruptions in Russian pipeline supply following the Ukraine conflict.