Origin Energy

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title: "Origin Energy" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["companies-based-in-sydney", "natural-gas-companies-of-australia", "electric-power-companies-of-australia", "energy-in-queensland", "companies-listed-on-the-australian-securities-exchange", "oil-and-gas-companies-of-new-zealand", "australian-companies-established-in-2000", "energy-companies-established-in-2000", "australian-subsidiaries-of-foreign-companies"] description: "Australian energy company" topic_path: "geography/australia" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_Energy" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Australian energy company ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox company"]

Field	Value
name	Origin Energy Ltd
logo	Origin Energy logo.svg
logo_size	120px
type	Public
traded_as
industry	Energy
foundation	February 2000, but parts of the business date from the 20th century
location	Barangaroo
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
key_people	Frank Calabria (CEO) (MD)
products	Electricity, natural gas, solar panels, LPG, hot water, heating and cooling, electric vehicle charging, broadband
revenue	A$12.097 billion (2021)
net_income	A$ billion (2021)
owner	AustralianSuper (17%)
website
::

| name = Origin Energy Ltd | logo = Origin Energy logo.svg | logo_size = 120px | caption = | type = Public | traded_as = | industry = Energy | foundation = February 2000, but parts of the business date from the 20th century | location = Barangaroo Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | key_people = Frank Calabria (CEO) (MD) | products = Electricity, natural gas, solar panels, LPG, hot water, heating and cooling, electric vehicle charging, broadband | revenue = A$12.097 billion (2021) | net_income = A$ billion (2021) | owner = AustralianSuper (17%) | website =

Origin Energy Ltd is an ASX listed public company with headquarters in Sydney. It is a major integrated electricity generator, and electricity and natural gas retailer. It operates Eraring Power Station, Australia's largest coal-fired power station, in New South Wales, which it plans to close in 2027. As of 2024, it plans to "minimise" its ownership of wind and solar power, to boost investor returns. It owns 20% of Octopus Energy, a UK renewable energy retailer.

History

Origin Energy was formed 18 February 2000, as a result of a spin-off from Boral. SAGASCO (formerly known as the South Australian Gas Company) became part of Origin Energy as part of the demerger.

Between 2001 and 2002, Origin acquired a Victorian electricity retailer licence from distributors Powercor and CitiPower. In 2004, the SEAGas pipeline was completed, linking the Victorian and South Australian gas markets. During this time, Origin obtained 50% interest in the Kupe Gas Field and Edison Mission Energy's 51.4% interest in New Zealand's Contact Energy. Origin sold its 53% shareholding in Contact Energy to the market in 2015.

On 27 November 2006, the Government of Queensland announced the sale of Sun Retail, the former retailing arm of Energex to Origin for $1.202 billion.

On 15 December 2010, Origin Energy announced that it would purchase the retail divisions of Country Energy and Integral Energy from the Government of New South Wales, at a total cost of A$3.25 billion, as well as entering a GenTrader agreement with Eraring Energy (in which Origin supplies fuel, pays certain charges, and can dispatch and sell electricity output, while Eraring Energy owns, operates and maintains the power stations). The transaction was completed on 1 March 2011.

In June 2022, it was announced that Origin had been fined $17 million for breaching its obligations to customers experiencing hardship and payment difficulties.

In August 2022, the company announced a goal for net-zero direct and indirect emissions by 2050.

In November 2022, Origin received a takeover offer from a Brookfield Asset Management and EIG Global Energy Partners consortium for . Origin agreed to the offer in March 2023, which sees its energy market business owned by Brookfield and its partners, while EIG's MidOcean Energy owns Origin's integrated gas business. In October 2023, the takeover was approved by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The acquisition was terminated in December 2023 after Origin shareholders led by its largest investor, AustralianSuper, opposed the deal, failing to meet the required 75% threshold.

In November 2025, Origin entered into an agreement to acquire the retail energy business of Energy Locals.

Core business

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Uranquinty_Power_Station_1.jpg" caption="Uranquinty Power Station (Natural gas)"] ::

Natural gas exploration and production

The company's portfolio includes the Bowen and Surat Basins in Queensland and the Browse Basin in Western Australia. In 2017, Origin sold its subsidiary Lattice Energy and its conventional upstream oil and gas business to Beach Energy for $1,585 million.

Australia Pacific LNG, Queensland, Australia

Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) is an incorporated company owned by Origin Energy, US giant ConocoPhillips and China's Sinopec. The project consists of development of Australia Pacific LNG's gas fields in the Surat and Bowen Basins, construction of a 530 km gas transmission pipeline from the gas fields to an LNG facility on Curtis Island and construction of an LNG facility on Curtis Island.

On 26 October 2017, gas producer and exporter APLNG entered into a sales agreement with Origin Energy, to supply 41 petajoules of gas under a 14-month contract starting 1 November. The contract brings the company's total commitment to 186 PJ for 2018, representing almost 30% of Australian east coast domestic gas market demand.

Energy retailing

Origin has approximately 4.217 million customers, servicing both large energy customers and the residential and small business market.

Electricity generation

Origin operates is able to generate 6,010 MW of electricity capacity. This represents approximately 13 per cent of power generation capacity in the National Electricity Market. ::data[format=table]

Power station	State	Location	Capacity MW	Peak/base	Commissioned	Fuel	Notes
Darling Downs Power Station	Queensland	Dalby	644	Baseload	2010	coal seam gas from the Surat Basin
Roma Power Station	Queensland	Roma	80	Peaking	1999	Gas	built by Boral
Mortlake Power Station	Victoria	12 km west of Mortlake	566	Peaking	2012	Otway Basin gas	Largest gas-fired power station in Victoria
Ladbroke Grove Power Station	South Australia	Penola	80	Peaking	2000	Natural gas
Quarantine Power Station	South Australia	Torrens Island	224	Peaking	2000 (enlarged in 2009)	Gas
Uranquinty Power Station	New South Wales	Uranquinty	664	Peaking	2009	Gas
Eraring Power Station	New South Wales	Dora Creek	2880	Baseload	1982	Coal	Australia's largest power station
Mount Stuart Power Station	Queensland	Stuart, Townsville	423	Peaking	1999	Kerosene	North Queensland's largest power station. Open-cycle gas turbine
Shoalhaven Hydro Pump Storage Scheme	New South Wales	Kangaroo Valley and Bendeela	240	Peaking		two pumped storage hydropower stations Water
Osborne Cogeneration Plant	South Australia	Osborne	180	Baseload and peak			jointly owned by Origin and ATCO Power
Worsley Cogeneration Plant	Western Australia	Worsley	60				provides steam and power to the Worsley Alumina Refinery. Jointly owned by Origin and Verve Energy
Dandenong Cogeneration Plant	Victoria	Dandenong	120			gas	In partnership with Places Victoria, Australia's first urban distributed energy precinct
Bendigo and Ballarat Solar Parks	Victoria	Ballarat and Bendigo	0.300		2009	Solar	generate a total of 710 MWh of power per year
::

Controversies

Whistleblower allegations

In January 2017, The Guardian reported allegations of whistleblower Sally McDow, a former compliance manager at Origin. She claimed that the company had ignored various wellfield integrity problems, including failing to maintain hundreds of wells across Australia and New Zealand, failing to seal wells after their active lives and failing to report incidents internally or to the appropriate regulators. She also described a culture of bullying and harassment within the organisation. She said that she had advised the CEO at the time, and Grant King (then President of the Business Council of Australia) but that King did not want the incidents reported. He allegedly stated that the incidents could be used by opponents of the unconventional gas industry to delay or halt current or future projects. Origin denied the allegations.

Beetaloo Basin fracking

Origin was approved by the Northern Territory government to start fracking in August 2019 and drilling commenced in October 2019. Fracking began in September 2020 following a six-month COVID-19 induced stand down. Origin has postponed production at their Kyalla well site to the second half of 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Concerns were expressed by local officials on the fracking operation, fearing that it could affect their ability to get groundwater and stating the local officials did not fully understand the contracts they were signing with petroleum companies. Accusations that Origin did not consult with traditional landowners before starting their planned exploration were refuted by the Northern Land Council which stated it understood the text in the contracts and consulted with traditional Aboriginal landowners. Origin stated that it conducted multiple checks when installing a well and that fracking stops if a check fails.

Origin divested from projects in the Beetaloo Basin in the Northern Territory in 2022.

Misleading information and prohibited fees

In December 2020, Origin was fined $126,000 after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission issued an infringement for misleading information regarding price increases in a letter sent out to Victorian customers in December 2019. Origin stated in the letter that electricity prices were changing because of the Victorian Essential Services Commission's increase to the Victorian Default Offer, an unrelated price set by the Essential Services Commission. However, the ACCC stated that the price increase was entirely Origin's choice and they chose to increase prices.

In October 2021 Origin was fined $5 million for charging 22,371 customers prohibited exit fees totaling $489,774. Origin received complaints about the fees in 2018 but continued charging them until 2020. The Essential Services Commission stated "Origin Energy knew at all times about the changes in the law banning exit fees and they even reviewed 19 different contract templates but didn’t remove the exit fees". By October 2021 fewer than half the wrongly charged exit fees had been reimbursed.

Pollution

In September 2022 Origin Energy pleaded guilty to releasing nearly 800,000 litres of polluted water from its coal seam gas operations in Queensland's Western Downs region, north-west of Brisbane. According to the Department of Environment and Science, heavy rain caused water to overflow from coal seam gas tanks into a nearby waterway, including a landholder's dam.

References

References

1. "Annual Report 2021 – Origin Energy".
2. (2023-04-11). "Brookfield's positive Origin Energy transition".
3. (17 February 2022). "Origin Energy to bring forward closure of Australia's largest coal-fired power plant". The Sydney Morning Herald.
4. (2024-06-12). "Origin Energy to trim green assets to boost returns".
5. Gottliebsen, Robert. (2023-10-24). "We risk getting out of global transformation too early".
6. (17 December 2020). "Our history". Origin Energy.
7. "Origin Energy Ltd Form 20-F/A (Amended Annual and Transition Report)".
8. (5 August 2015). "Origin Energy sale of Contact completed". Contact Energy.
9. (1 February 2007). "New dawn for Qld energy market". Energex.
10. (December 2010). "Acquisition of New South Wales Energy Businesses". Origin Energy.
11. (2010-12-14). "Origin buys NSW power assets for $3.25b".
12. (1 March 2011). "Origin completes acquisition of Integral Energy and Country Energy retail businesses and enters binding GenTrader arrangements with Eraring Energy". Origin Limited.
13. Harmsen, Nick. (29 June 2022). "Federal Court orders Origin Energy to pay $17 million penalty over breaching hardship obligations". ABC News.
14. (2022-08-26). "Australia's Origin Energy sets sights on net-zero emissions by 2050".
15. Toscano, Nick. (10 November 2022). "Origin Energy fields $18b takeover offer from Brookfield". [[The Sydney Morning Herald]].
16. (10 March 2023). "Origin Energy bidders ready to sign on the dotted line". [[Australian Financial Review]].
17. Marchese, Adriano. (27 March 2023). "Brookfield Renewable Enters Australian Renewable Energy Market with Origin Energy Deal". The Wall Street Journal.
18. [https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/accc-clears-canadian-fund-s-18-7b-takeover-of-origin-energy-20231010-p5eb1x.html ACCC clears Canadian fund's $18.7n takeover of Origin Energy] {{Webarchive. link. (10 October 2023 ''[[Sydney Morning Herald]]'' 10 October 2023)
19. Murdoch, Scott. (2023-12-04). "Origin investors reject $10.6 billion Brookfield bid, company open to other funding".
20. (2025-11-14). "Retailer that set out on a mission to disrupt legacy energy giants is being bought out by one".
21. (28 September 2017). "Origin agrees to sell Lattice Energy for $1,585 million". Origin Limited.
22. Latimer, Cole. (26 October 2017). "APLNG joint venture to boost gas supply to east coast".
23. "About the project". Australia Pacific LNG.
24. Energy, Origin. (27 May 2020). "Five Year Financial History – Origin Energy".
25. (3 August 2015). "Generation capacity and peak demand". Australian Energy Regulator.
26. "Electricity Generation". Origin Energy.
27. (3 June 1999). "$30 Million Roma Power Station Meets Qld's Increased Electricity Demands". Boral Limited.
28. Slezak, Michael. (2017-01-26). "Origin Energy ignores coal seam gas well leaks, whistleblower says".
29. (22 August 2019). "second approval for fracking quickly follows the first".
30. "Engaging with Traditional Owners – Origin Beetaloo".
31. (21 September 2020). "Fracking to start in the Beetaloo". Katherine Times.
32. Finnanne, Kieran. (2020-03-26). "COVID-19 pauses Origin's Beetaloo activity {{!}} Alice Springs News". Alice Spring News.
33. Fitzgerald, Roxanne. (12 July 2019). "Traditional owners banned from Origin Energy fracking meeting".
34. (23 October 2020). "NLC backs Origin in fracking stoush with traditional owners". The Northern Territory News.
35. Perkins, Miki. (2019-10-05). "Fractured future: Water fears as drilling for gas begins in the NT". The Sydney Morning Herald.
36. (19 September 2022). "Origin Energy backs out of investment into on-shore gas exploration in Beetaloo Basin". ABC News.
37. Commission, Australian Competition and Consumer. (2020-12-22). "Origin Energy pays penalty for allegedly misleading electricity customers".
38. (25 October 2021). "Origin Energy pays $5m fine for exit fees". 7News.
39. Hope, Zach. (2022-09-06). "Origin Energy pleads guilty to releasing contaminated coal seam gas water".
40. (2022-09-06). "Origin Energy fined $60,000 in Brisbane Magistrates Court".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::