A staggering $241 million combined donations were given to Liberals, Nationals, and Labor parties in the year leading up to the last election, with millions contributed by oil and gas corporations and their lobbyists operating in the NT, data published by the Australian Electoral Commission reveals.

According to the records, at least $2.3 million worth of donations came from fossil fuel companies, which included $200,000 from Beetaloo fracking company Tamboran and $113,970 from oil and gas lobbyists APPEA— both backers of the proposed new Middle Arm gas and petrochemicals hub in Darwin.

A total of $872 million was earmarked by the Federal Government for the Beetaloo Basin project, with the Federal Government contributing $660 million and the Territory Government allocating $212 million.

For the Middle Arm industrial precinct, the Federal Government has promised at least $1.5 billion but wants some paid back if the project becomes successful.

GetUp CEO and Widjabul Wia-bul woman Larissa Baldwin-Roberts said she was concerned with the appearance of grants connected to donations.

“Tamboran asks the Federal Government for public money to frack the Beetaloo Basin, gets that public money, then donates hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Federal Government… This comes at the expense of Aboriginal communities who have been saying no to fracking their land for over a decade. If this doesn’t tell you the system is broken, I don’t know what does,” Ms Baldwin-Roberts said.

Tamboran Resources is among the gas players being investigated by the Senate inquiry into oil and gas exploration and production in the Beetaloo Basin, with that report now expected to be released on February 14.

Ms Baldwin-Roberts said the government must not make available further grants to fossil fuel corporations.

“We need to stand strong against these multinational giants to protect our sacred country, water, communities and their future,” she said.

“In the year of the Voice, we are calling for Traditional Owners to be heard—to put an end to fracking in the Beetaloo and instead invest in the basic services Aboriginal communities have been demanding for years—housing and health.”

Coal and gas donations

The Greens said that the financial relationship between the fossil fuel sector and the Labor Party explains why Labor’s Safeguard Mechanism backs more coal and gas.

“These dirty donations explain why Labor is allowing new coal and gas in the safeguard mechanism,” Greens Leader Adam Bandt said.

Mr Bandt said that Woodside and Santos donated more to the ALP than the Liberals and Nationals combined, and have been granted access to new projects that could harm the climate.

“Labor is taking money from the coal and gas corporations causing the climate crisis and then proposing laws that allow new coal and gas projects to go ahead,” he said.

“It has become clear that Labor’s climate plan was paid for by coal and gas. Labor’s plan for more coal and gas means floods, fires and food supply problems will get worse.

“The coal and gas donors’ fingerprints are all over Labor’s safeguard legislation.”

Greens leader in the Senate and spokesperson on democracy Senator Larissa Waters said that coal and gas projects, energy companies and mineral and resource councils all feature heavily. “Is it any wonder the fossil fuel sector continues to benefit? The Albanese government handed out $42.7 billion over ten years of fossil fuel subsidies in the last budget, turbocharging climate destruction.”

“Santos, which is pushing to frack the Beetaloo basin, received $16 million in public money for its Moomba Carbon Capture and Storage Project and gave $154,000 to the major parties. That’s a pretty good return on investment,” Senator Waters said.

The AEC donation data also revealed that:

Woodside, whose Burrup Peninsula gas project in Scarborough has been supported by both sides of politics, donated $68,150 to the ALP, $21,700 to the Nationals and $20,080 to the Liberal Party.

Gas lobby group APPEA gifted $54,250 to the ALP, followed by $31,000 to the Liberals and $28,720 to the Nationals. Santos donated $83,360 to the ALP, followed by $38,000 to the Liberals and $32,300 to the Nationals.

Gas corporation Tamboran Resources donated $200,000, of which $138,000 went to the Coalition and $62,000 went to Labor. In the same year, Tamboran Resources received a $7.5m grant from the Coalition for natural gas exploration at the Beetaloo.