Australia is the world's third largest LNG exporter.[1] This page shows, in real time, what the public actually collects in Petroleum Resource Rent Tax[2] against what a flat 25 percent export tax on gas would raise instead. Toggle on the comparisons to see what the government squeezes out of beer, wine, spirits, fuel, and graduates.
The industry warns a tax would crush investment. Move the slider to see just how much profit is left to flow into shareholders' pockets. This section uses 2024 figures: that year, Australia's gas extraction sector earned an estimated $35 billion in profit before tax[8] on $67 billion in gas exports.[1] Even with a 25 percent export tax, the industry walks away with a massive $18 billion in gas profit. Why not 2025? The ABS has not yet published industry profit figures for any later year. Gas exports fell to $60 billion in 2025, and profits will likely have fallen too, so we keep revenue and profit from the same year rather than mix them and overstate what is left.
Revenue is the money coming in. Add up every dollar made from selling gas overseas for an entire year, and you get total export revenue, which was about $60 billion in 2025, down from $67 billion in 2024.[1]
But revenue is not money in the bank. The companies still have to pay for drilling rigs, ships, processing plants, wages, fuel, interest on loans, and so on. A 25% export tax would apply to the revenue, the same way GST applies to a coffee. It is calculated off the top, before any costs come out.
Profit is what is left over after every bill is paid. The drilling rigs, the ships, the processing plants, the staff, the equipment, the lot. Whatever remains is profit. It is the money the company gets to keep, and in 2024, Australian gas extraction generated an estimated $35 billion in gas-attributable profit.[8]
Profit is how a company grows and rewards its shareholders. It funds reinvestment, research and development. Without it a business cannot remain operational. As we’ve seen, the proposed 25% export tax still leaves a lot of profit in the bank.
The Gas Gap was built and paid for by one Australian, with no funding, direction, or input from any political party, industry group, or third party. The aim is to lay out the public numbers and let them speak. If you spot an error in the figures or sources, or have additional information that would improve accuracy, please email info@thegasgap.com