SYDNEY (Bloomberg) -- Chevron Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Woodside Petroleum Ltd. are among oil and gas companies that won permits to explore off the coast of Australia, the nation’s Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson said.

Australia has awarded 10 petroleum exploration permits to companies planning to invest a combined A$158 million ($137 million) in projects off the shores of Western Australia and the Northern Territory, Ferguson said in a statement on Friday. Chevron, Shell and Woodside gained two permits to explore in the Carnarvon Basin, he said.
The investments by the group of companies, which also includes Carnarvon Petroleum Ltd. and Goldsborough Energy Pty Ltd., “will ultimately help to further develop our petroleum resources and underpin our security of energy supply,” Ferguson said.
Australia’s oil and gas producers propose developments valued in excess of A$200 billion ($174 billion), the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association said in June. The new investments show Australia is an attractive destination for petroleum exploration, even during a global economic downturn, Ferguson said.
The petroleum exploration will be subject to “stringent” environmental approval before it can begin, he said in the statement.