The state of Victoria is tendering gas exploration licenses for the first time since 2018 in a bid to avoid a shortage, despite efforts to reduce the consumption of hydrocarbons. In an announcement on its website, the state government invited bids for permits in two areas, the Otway Basin and the Gippsland Basin. “Applications for the offshore block VIC/25-1 that use existing seismic data and do not propose new seismic testing will be preferred,” the Victorian government noted in its announcement, in tune with a broader government move…