Woodside Petroleum’s Chief Financial Officer Mark Chatterji said today that the oil and gas giant cannot simply absorb the cost of the Rudd Government’s proposed $2.5 billion new tax on condensate. “In order to stay competitive, businesses seek to pass cost increases on to their customers,” he said in a statement.

The Australian: Kevin Rudd accused the Coalition of siding with big oil companies over the FuelWatch scheme today, as the Government conceded it was prepared to “listen” to key senators to secure support.
Assistant Treasurer Chris Bowen extended an olive branch to crossbench senators over FuelWatch, admitting the Government would accept legislative amendments after it became [...]