New polling shows majority of Australians support increasing taxes on the profits of large oil and gas corporations
One in three large fossil fuel companies paid no tax in Australia in 2023–24, as fossil fuel giants rake in billions while households shoulder rising costs, new report from Oxfam Australia and Make Big Polluters Pay reveals.
Despite generating a combined $436 billion in income, the sector contributed just 5% in corporate income tax - a fraction of what everyday Australians pay - while profits continue to flow to CEOs and shareholders.
At the same time, Australians are being hit with soaring energy bills, rising grocery prices, and the escalating cost of climate-fuelled disasters, from floods to bushfires.
The report, Freeloaders, released as the first international conference on the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels wraps up in Santa Marta, Colombia, exposes the scale of the gap. Oil and gas companies alone reported $116 billion in income but paid just $5.2 billion in corporate income tax—around 4%.
Key findings include:
- Santos has paid no corporate income tax in the decade 2013–14 to 2023-24, despite making over $46 billion in total income.
- Meanwhile, in 2023-2024 Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher took home a $6.5 million salary, more than 10 times our Prime Minister and 85 times more than the average nurse.
- Peabody's Australian subsidiary paid no corporate income tax for nine years [from 2014-15 to 2022-2023], despite generating over $35 billion in revenue over the decade to 2023–24 and paying its CEO $14 million in 2025.
- The Ichthys LNG Project off WA, partly owned by INPEX and TotalEnergies, also paid no corporate income tax from 2018-19 to 2023-24 on $43 billion in total income.
In reality, despite generating billions in revenue and profits from coal, oil and gas, and contributing to climate change in the process, corporate income tax payments remain small relative to overall government revenue. This reflects a broader imbalance in the sector, where extraordinary private rewards are paired with comparatively limited public contribution.
New polling by Oxfam shows a majority of Australians support increasing taxes on the profits of large oil and gas corporations to help fund the transition to renewable energy (60%), compared to 27% who oppose. Support for new taxes outweighs opposition across the political spectrum. In addition, 59% of Australians support increased investment in renewable energy, while only 29% support further investment in fossil fuel extraction.
Australians are already bearing the cost of climate change, with damages from storms, droughts, bushfires and floods now estimated at $38 billion per year - around $3,800 on average per household. Many communities impacted by climate disasters face long-term financial and emotional recovery. Also, the war in the Middle East is expected to worsen cost pressures, with oil and gas price volatility already flowing through to higher living costs for households.
Oxfam Australia Chief Executive Jennifer Tierney said it is unacceptable that some coal, oil and gas corporations pay little to no tax while Australians face rising costs of living.
"It is fundamentally unfair that some coal, oil and gas corporations are making billions from Australia's resources and paying little to no corporate income tax, while everyday Australians face rising energy bills, food costs, insurance premiums and climate disaster recovery costs," she said.
"In some cases, fossil fuel CEOs are taking home multi-million-dollar salaries while Australians are left to carry the cost of rising living expenses and climate impacts."
"The Australian Government must close these gaps, including by introducing a 25% levy on gas exports.
"It's disappointing to hear Anthony Albanese bow to pressure from the Japanese Government and back away from action. A tax on gas corporations' revenue is simply about ensuring Australia gets a fair deal for its resources, just as other exporting countries do. It won't stop companies from exporting gas.
"Fossil fuel companies are generating significant profits while costs are being pushed onto families, workers and communities. Governments must ensure these corporations contribute fairly — including by ending subsidies, securing fair returns for public resources, and closing tax loopholes that enable profit shifting and minimisation," she said.
Ahead of the Federal Budget, Oxfam is calling on the Australian Government to:
- Ensure fair royalties are paid for Australia's gas resources, by replacing the failing Petroleum Resource Rent Tax (PRRT) with a new 25% gas export levy.
- End subsidies for fossil fuel corporations, by excluding them from the Fuel Tax Credit scheme.
- Reduce multinational corporate tax avoidance by advocating strongly for the establishment of a progressive United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation in current negotiations.
- Introduce a climate pollution levy to reflect the true cost of fossil fuel pollution on the communities it disproportionately impacts.
- Establish a Climate Compensation Fund, funded by gas export and climate pollution levies, to help communities adapt and recover from climate disasters.
