Key Highlights

The oil and gas corner of the Australian share market has seldom offered as wide a spread of stories as it does in September 2026. For investors combing through ASX oil and gas stocks this month, the sector rewards a careful, company-by-company approach rather than a single broad-brush view.

This article profiles eight ASX oil and gas stocks to watch: Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX:KAR), Carnarvon Energy Limited (ASX:CVN), Brookside Energy Limited (ASX:BRK), 88 Energy Limited (ASX:88E), Comet Ridge Ltd (ASX:COI), Santos Limited (ASX:STO), Strike Energy Limited (ASX:STX) and Beetaloo Energy Australia Limited (ASX:BTL). They range from established producers to pre-revenue developers and frontier explorers, and each has released significant news during 2026.

The ASX oil and gas sector in September 2026

Australian oil and gas stocks enter the final quarter of 2026 against a backdrop of range-bound oil prices, softer international LNG pricing than the peak years of 2022–2023, and a domestic gas market that policymakers repeatedly warn is heading toward a Supply shortfall on the east coast. That combination has produced a two-speed sector. Larger producers with oil and LNG exposure, such as Santos and Karoon Energy, have generated solid cash flows and returned Capital to shareholders, even as softer LNG realisations have capped Earnings growth. Domestic gas developers — a group that includes Comet Ridge, Strike Energy and Beetaloo Energy — have drawn investor interest precisely because they aim to supply a market that is expected to tighten.

The energy-security debate has also become a corporate one. The failed 2025 Takeover approach for Santos underlined how strategic Australia’s gas Assets have become to international buyers, and how sensitive such deals are to regulatory and domestic-supply considerations. For smaller companies, the story is more about execution: reaching a final Investment decision, securing funding, and converting resources into reserves and, ultimately, production. The eight companies below capture that full range of oil and gas Business models.

Capital markets conditions have shaped the sector too. Through 2026 a series of ASX oil and gas juniors have tapped Equity markets to fund drilling and development — from Comet Ridge’s AUD 40.9 million raise to Strike Energy’s Hancock-backed funding package and Beetaloo Energy’s Placement and Debt facility. That willingness of investors to fund credible domestic gas projects, even amid a cautious backdrop for speculative resources stocks, reflects the strategic pull of the forecast supply gap. At the same time, the discipline is real: companies without a clear path to cash flow, reserves or a carried partner have found funding harder and more dilutive, a dynamic visible in the diverging fortunes of the names on this list. For anyone weighing September 2026 ASX stocks in the sector, funding status has become almost as important as the underlying geology.

Global and domestic market backdrop

Globally, oil markets in 2026 have been characterised by managed supply, resilient Demand and persistent geopolitical risk, keeping prices supportive without returning to extremes. This matters most for the producers on this list with direct oil exposure — Karoon Energy through its Brazilian and Gulf of Mexico barrels, and Brookside Energy through its liquids-rich US onshore production. LNG pricing, central to Santos, has eased from its prior peaks, shifting the earnings emphasis toward Volume growth from new projects rather than price.

Domestically, the east-coast gas narrative is the single most important theme for the developers here. Forecasts of a supply gap in the southern states have supported gas sales agreements, government backing and offtake interest for companies advancing new projects in Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Western Australia’s domestic gas reservation policy, meanwhile, underpins Strike Energy’s Perth Basin strategy. Against this backdrop, the following sections examine each company’s assets, results, strategy, milestones and risks.

Oil, gas and LNG trends shaping these stocks

The Commodity backdrop is what ultimately separates winners from strugglers across ASX oil and gas stocks, and in 2026 it is a story of divergence. Crude oil, referenced globally to Brent and West Texas Intermediate benchmarks, has held a supportive but unspectacular range, rewarding producers that can grow volumes and control costs rather than those simply waiting for higher prices. That environment favours the producing names on this list — Santos, Karoon Energy and Brookside Energy — where cash generation depends on operational delivery.

International LNG, the product that has historically driven Santos’s export earnings, has retreated from the extraordinary prices of 2022 and 2023 as new global supply has come to market and demand growth has moderated. The practical consequence is that Santos’s near-term earnings uplift is being driven more by the volume growth from Barossa and Pikka than by price. For domestic Australian gas, however, the picture is far tighter. The Australian Energy Market Operator has repeatedly flagged the risk of shortfalls in the southern states later this decade, and that outlook is the central investment thesis for Comet Ridge, Strike Energy and Beetaloo Energy, each of which is racing to bring new supply to market. Condensate and light oil Economics also matter for the Queensland developers and for Brookside’s liquids-rich United States wells, where higher-value liquids improve project returns. This blend of range-bound oil, softer export LNG and firm domestic gas is the frame within which every company below operates.

Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX:KAR)

Company overview

Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX:KAR) is an international oil producer that reports in US dollars, with a wholly owned production hub at Baúna offshore Brazil and a non-operated interest in the Who Dat development in the US Gulf of Mexico, plus the Neon development project in Brazil.

Latest ASX announcements

Karoon’s 2026 calendar included quarterly reports in April and July, an operational update and revised guidance on 16 June 2026, a final investment decision on Who Dat East on 12 August 2026, and half-year results on 27 August 2026.

Financial performance

For the half-year to 30 June 2026, Karoon reported sales Revenue of USD 244.9 million, underlying net profit after tax of USD 29.2 million and underlying EBITDAX of USD 129.7 million, with operating Cash Flow of USD 58.4 million. Net debt rose to USD 269.7 million, reflecting Baúna capital spending and buybacks, while production fell 44% year on year to 3.17 million barrels of oil equivalent on campaign-related downtime.

Operations and major assets

The Baúna floating production development is Karoon’s core asset, and a major first-half investment campaign is designed to lift second-half output. The Who Dat East final investment decision, taken in August 2026, is expected to deliver an internal rate of return above 20%, while the Neon project awaits a front-end engineering decision anticipated in the fourth quarter of 2026.

September 2026 developments

Karoon’s FY2026 guidance, issued on 27 August 2026, is for total production of 7.2–8.2 million barrels of oil equivalent and Capital Expenditure of USD 193–222 million. It declared a fully Franked Dividend of 1.2 Australian cents per share, payable 30 September 2026.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include the Baúna production recovery, Who Dat East development, the Neon engineering decision, the oil price, and continued capital returns.

Key risks

Risks include oil-price exposure, single-asset operational risk at Baúna, rising net debt, and Brazilian and Gulf of Mexico execution and regulatory risk.

What investors may watch next

Carnarvon Energy Limited (ASX:CVN)

Company overview

Carnarvon Energy Limited (ASX:CVN) is a Perth-based oil and gas explorer and developer focused on offshore Western Australia’s Bedout Basin, home to the large undeveloped Dorado oil discovery operated by Santos. During 2025 Carnarvon broadened its strategy, taking a strategic equity stake of close to 19.9% in domestic gas producer Strike Energy.

Latest ASX announcements

Carnarvon released a quarterly activities report on 23 January 2026 and its half-year financial report on 13 March 2026, covering the six months to 31 December 2025.

Financial performance

Carnarvon reported a net loss after tax of AUD 1.808 million for the half-year to 31 December 2025, a swing from a AUD 7.050 million profit in the prior period, driven by lower interest income and its share of associate losses from the Strike investment. The company held cash of AUD 98.296 million at 31 December 2025 — down from AUD 186.144 million six months earlier, reflecting the Strike stake — and carried no debt.

Operations and major assets

Carnarvon holds a minority interest in the Santos-operated Dorado project alongside broader Bedout Basin exploration acreage, where roughly 450 million barrels of oil equivalent have been discovered. Investors should note that Carnarvon is a non-operator, so timing is influenced by Santos. Environmental approvals are being advanced toward an exploration drilling campaign targeted for the first half of 2027.

September 2026 developments

With Dorado development deferred by the operator pending further appraisal, Carnarvon’s near-term activity centres on preparing for the 2027 Bedout campaign while maintaining a substantial, debt-free balance sheet.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include the 2027 Bedout exploration well, any Dorado development restart decision by Santos, and the performance of the Strike Energy stake.

Key risks

What investors may watch next

Carnarvon is a cash-rich minority partner in a tier-one undeveloped oil resource, with its 2027 drilling plans and the Strike investment the key stories to follow.

Brookside Energy Limited (ASX:BRK)

Company overview

Brookside Energy Limited (ASX:BRK) is a Perth-headquartered but United States–operating onshore oil and gas producer active in Oklahoma’s Anadarko Basin, where its flagship is the SWISH area of interest. Unlike many small-cap peers, Brookside is cash-flow-positive and carries a net-cash balance sheet.

Latest ASX announcements

Brookside reported its 2025 full-year results around the end of March 2026 and provided a development update on its Riverbend area of interest on 13 May 2026.

Financial performance

For the year to 31 December 2025, Brookside reported sales revenue of AUD 53.8 million, up 15%, net profit after tax of AUD 2.7 million, EBITDA of AUD 19.0 million and cash of AUD 11.9 million, maintaining a net-cash position with no material debt. Production was around 662,000 barrels of oil equivalent net for the year, with a liquids-rich yield.

Operations and major assets

Brookside’s SWISH area targets liquids-rich Sycamore and Woodford reservoirs and has delivered a substantial operated-well success record. Its next operated frontier, the Riverbend area, had secured more than 40% of its initial leasehold objective as of May 2026, with drilling contingent on further acreage consolidation, approvals and prices. The company also holds non-operated interests that provide steady cash flow.

September 2026 developments

Brookside has continued a capital-disciplined, cash-flow-funded growth strategy, returning capital via a share buyback and progressing plans for a possible United States listing. New SWISH wells and the Riverbend consolidation are the operational focus.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include new SWISH wells and production ramp, the Riverbend consolidation and any maiden drilling decision, reserve re-certification, and United States listing progress.

Key risks

Risks include exposure to US oil and gas prices, reserve and production concentration in SWISH, drilling and completion cost inflation, and foreign-exchange effects.

What investors may watch next

88 Energy Limited (ASX:88E)

Company overview

88 Energy Limited (ASX:88E) is an oil and gas explorer focused on the Alaska North Slope, with additional interests in Namibia and the Permian Basin in Texas. It is a pre-revenue, milestone-driven micro-cap and completed a 25-for-1 share consolidation in May 2025.

Latest ASX announcements

During 2026 the company completed a AUD 5.0 million equity placement on 27 March 2026 and provided quarterly updates flagging progress across its Alaskan and Namibian interests, including 3D seismic Acquisition at its Kad River East acreage in April 2026.

Financial performance

As a pre-revenue explorer, 88 Energy is loss-making. Following the March 2026 placement, pro-forma cash stood at roughly AUD 10 million. The company is funded largely by a carry from its farm-out partner supplemented by periodic capital raises.

Operations and major assets

The flagship is Project Phoenix on the central North Slope, adjacent to established Alaskan infrastructure. 88 Energy also holds the South Prudhoe and Kad River East acreage in Alaska and a non-operated interest in Namibia’s PEL 93. Its Project Phoenix work is being carried by Burgundy Xploration under a farm-out arrangement, with the key Horizontal Well spud target moved to March 2027 in aligned amended terms.

September 2026 developments

88 Energy’s near-term milestones are a Burgundy funding deadline of 30 September 2026 and a maiden resource estimate expected at Kad River East in the second half of 2026. These timelines are company targets rather than firm outcomes.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include the Burgundy funding milestone and its planned United States listing, the Kad River East maiden resource, and future Alaskan drilling.

Key risks

Risks include serial equity dilution and funding pressure, heavy reliance on the Burgundy carry, repeated timeline slippage, binary drilling outcomes, and high-cost Arctic operations.

What investors may watch next

Comet Ridge Ltd (ASX:COI)

Company overview

Comet Ridge Ltd (ASX:COI) is a Brisbane-based east-coast gas developer whose flagship is the Mahalo Gas Hub in Queensland’s southern Bowen Basin. In August 2026 it moved to 100% ownership of the core Mahalo project by acquiring Santos’s stake.

Latest ASX announcements

Comet Ridge had an eventful 2026, including restructured acquisition terms in May, a AUD 40.9 million placement completed on 13–14 August 2026, and completion of the Mahalo acquisition on 24 August 2026, taking it to full ownership.

Financial performance

For the half-year to 31 December 2025, Comet Ridge reported a net loss of AUD 2.1 million, with cash of AUD 7.046 million at period end. Following its capital raising, unaudited cash later stood at roughly AUD 27.7 million. The Santos acquisition completion consideration was around AUD 28 million, comprising cash and shares, plus up to AUD 30 million in contingent payments tied to future gas-sales milestones.

Operations and major assets

The Mahalo Gas Hub is fully licensed, with environmental approvals, low-carbon-dioxide gas and proximity to major LNG and pipeline infrastructure. Following the acquisition, Comet Ridge cited about 361 petajoules of 2P reserves and combined 2P-plus-2C resources of roughly 676 petajoules. It also holds earlier-stage acreage in the Galilee and Gunnedah basins.

September 2026 developments

Comet Ridge is progressing front-end engineering and design toward a final investment decision, with a gas sales agreement with CleanCo targeting first supply from 1 January 2030 and a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Highview for additional volumes.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include a Mahalo final investment decision, additional binding gas-sales agreements, contingent-payment milestones, and reserve upgrades from the 100%-owned blocks.

Key risks

Risks include the pre-revenue status and large capital expenditure ahead, recent heavy dilution and likely further funding needs, timeline risk to 2030 first gas, and approvals risk.

What investors may watch next

Santos Limited (ASX:STO)

Company overview

Santos Limited (ASX:STO) is Australia’s second-largest oil and gas producer and a major LNG supplier, with assets across Australia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and, newly, Alaska. Core operations span the Cooper Basin, Queensland’s GLNG project, Western Australian gas, the Barossa project backfilling Darwin LNG, and the Pikka oil development in Alaska.

Latest ASX announcements

Santos reported full-year 2025 results on 18 February 2026 and half-year 2026 results in August 2026. The dominant corporate event of the prior year was a takeover approach: in June 2025 an XRG-led consortium, associated with Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC, made an indicative cash proposal of USD 5.76 per share, valuing Santos at roughly USD 18.7–19 billion, before the consortium withdrew the proposal on 17 September 2025. Santos shares fell around 12% following the withdrawal.

Financial performance

For full-year 2025, Santos reported sales revenue of USD 4.9 billion, underlying net profit after tax of USD 898 million and free cash flow of USD 1.8 billion, with production of 87.7 million barrels of oil equivalent. For the half-year to 30 June 2026 it reported sales revenue of USD 2.6 billion, EBITDAX of USD 1.6 billion and production of 45.6 million barrels of oil equivalent, and guided that second-half 2026 production would be 20–30% higher than the first half as Barossa and Pikka ramp up.

Operations and major assets

Barossa achieved first production and was producing around 550 million standard cubic feet per day by mid-2026, targeting roughly 600 by the end of the third quarter. Pikka Phase 1 in Alaska achieved first oil in May 2026 and is ramping toward an 80,000-barrel-per-day gross plateau targeted for late September 2026. These two projects are reshaping Santos’s production mix and cash flow.

September 2026 developments

Santos maintained full-year 2026 guidance of 101–111 million barrels of oil equivalent of production and capital expenditure of USD 1.95–2.15 billion. It paid an interim 2026 dividend of US11.6 cents per share, under a policy of returning at least 60% of free cash flow to shareholders.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include Barossa reaching a stable plateau, Pikka hitting its plateau, the associated second-half cash-flow uplift, oil and LNG prices, and any renewed corporate interest or value-unlocking asset sales.

Key risks

Risks include commodity-price exposure, large net debt of around USD 6 billion, execution and ramp risk at Barossa and Pikka, and regulatory and domestic-gas policy risk.

What investors may watch next

Strike Energy Limited (ASX:STX)

Company overview

Strike Energy Limited (ASX:STX) is an independent Australian energy company focused on onshore conventional gas in the Perth Basin in Western Australia, pursuing a vertically integrated gas-and-power strategy. Carnarvon Energy is a strategic shareholder.

Latest ASX announcements

A key 2026 development was a breakthrough on the West Erregulla project announced in late August 2026, under which Strike selected Hancock Energy’s proposed processing Facility and secured up to AUD 30 million of funding support, reducing near-term equity-raising pressure.

Financial performance

For the year to 30 June 2025, Strike reported total revenue of AUD 72.7 million and underlying EBITDA of AUD 41.6 million, but a net loss after tax of AUD 157.3 million driven by AUD 117.7 million of impairments, including a Walyering reserves downgrade. It held cash of AUD 41.1 million at 30 June 2025. Investors should distinguish the operating cash generation from the non-cash Impairment charges.

Operations and major assets

Strike’s producing Walyering field supplied around 25 terajoules a day of sales gas through the 2025 financial year. Its South Erregulla project pairs a gas field with an 85-megawatt peaking power station, for which a final investment decision has been taken, with commissioning targeted before 1 October 2026 and projected revenue of AUD 50–55 million a year over its first five years. West Erregulla is a larger undeveloped resource being progressed toward a final investment decision targeted for the 2028 financial year, with first gas around mid-2029.

September 2026 developments

The immediate priority is commissioning the South Erregulla power station and beginning power sales in the 2026–27 capacity year, while de-risking West Erregulla via the Hancock partnership. These timelines are company targets.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include power-station commissioning and first revenue, Walyering reserve and production stabilisation, West Erregulla milestones, and exploration results.

Key risks

Risks include reserves-downgrade precedent at Walyering, reliance on external funding, prior-year losses, and power-project construction and commissioning risk.

What investors may watch next

Beetaloo Energy Australia Limited (ASX:BTL)

Company overview

Beetaloo Energy Australia Limited (ASX:BTL) was formerly Empire Energy Group, renamed on 18 June 2025. It is a pure-play developer in the Beetaloo Sub-basin of the Northern Territory — a world-class shale-gas play — and should not be confused with the separate Beetaloo operator Tamboran Resources. The company has divested its former United States assets to focus on the Beetaloo.

Latest ASX announcements

During 2026 Beetaloo advanced its Carpentaria Pilot Project, reporting substantial well results, key federal and Northern Territory approvals to sell appraisal gas, and a funding package the company says makes it fully funded to first production.

Financial performance

Beetaloo is pre-revenue. Its funding package includes an equity placement of roughly AUD 66.3 million, a AUD 45 million Midstream facility from Macquarie Bank and a research-and-development tax refund of about AUD 15.4 million. Detailed full-period financial line items were not disclosed in the sources reviewed, consistent with a development-stage company.

Operations and major assets

The flagship Carpentaria Pilot Project sits within the EP187 permit. The Carpentaria-5H well delivered one of the highest 30-day average flow rates recorded in the basin, and the Carpentaria Gas Plant is under construction. Beetaloo holds a 10-year gas sales agreement with the Northern Territory Government to supply up to 25 terajoules a day.

September 2026 developments

Beetaloo targets first gas in 2026, though reporting on the precise timing has varied between mid-2026 and late 2026, with the most recent guidance pointing to late in the year. Investors should treat first-gas timing as subject to execution risk.

Growth drivers and potential milestones

milestones include first gas at Carpentaria, further flow-test results, the production ramp toward the 25-terajoule-a-day agreement, and additional appraisal results across the Beetaloo.

Key risks

Risks include execution and construction delays, remote infrastructure and logistics, regulatory and social-licence considerations around fracking, funding and dilution risk if timelines slip, and single-basin concentration.

What investors may watch next

Comparing the eight companies

These eight ASX oil and gas stocks separate naturally into tiers. Santos is the large-cap producer, generating billions in revenue and returning capital while ramping two major new projects. Karoon Energy is the mid-cap oil producer with a dividend and a production-recovery story. Brookside Energy is a rare profitable micro-cap, generating cash from United States onshore production. These three are the revenue-generating names.

The remaining five are pre-production or exploration stories at different stages. Comet Ridge, Strike Energy and Beetaloo Energy are domestic gas developers advancing toward first gas or first power, each targeting a slice of a market that policymakers expect to tighten, and each carrying funding and execution risk. Carnarvon Energy is a cash-rich explorer awaiting a 2027 drilling campaign and holding a strategic stake in Strike. 88 Energy is the most speculative, a carried Alaskan explorer whose timelines have repeatedly moved.

For readers screening ASX stocks to watch in the oil and gas space, the useful distinctions are producing versus pre-production, oil-linked versus gas-linked, and self-funded versus externally dependent. Santos, Karoon and Brookside sit on the producing, self-funded side; Comet Ridge, Strike, Beetaloo, Carnarvon and 88 Energy sit at varying points along the development and exploration spectrum, with correspondingly higher execution and funding risk.

Santos, at roughly AUD 27.6 billion, dwarfs the rest of the group combined, followed by Karoon Energy near AUD 1.25 billion. Strike Energy, Beetaloo Energy, Carnarvon Energy and Comet Ridge occupy the AUD 150 million to AUD 415 million band, while Brookside Energy and 88 Energy sit below AUD 40 million. Income-focused readers will note that only Santos and Karoon among these eight currently pay dividends; the remaining six retain all capital for development or exploration.

Potential developments to watch through the remainder of 2026

The final months of 2026 hold a dense schedule of potential milestones across this group. For Santos, the market will focus on Barossa reaching its targeted plateau and Pikka ramping toward 80,000 barrels a day by late September, which together should lift second-half cash flow, as well as on whether any renewed corporate interest emerges after the failed 2025 approach. Karoon Energy’s second-half Baúna production recovery and its Neon front-end engineering decision, expected in the fourth quarter, are the key operational markers, alongside its 30 September dividend.

Among the developers, Comet Ridge’s progress toward a Mahalo final investment decision following its move to full ownership, Strike Energy’s commissioning of the South Erregulla power station by around October, and Beetaloo Energy’s push toward first gas are the standout events to monitor. Carnarvon Energy’s preparations for its 2027 Bedout campaign and the performance of its Strike stake, Brookside Energy’s new SWISH wells and Riverbend consolidation, and 88 Energy’s Burgundy funding deadline and Kad River East resource estimate round out a busy period. As always, these are potential milestones rather than certainties, and their outcomes — and the commodity prices against which they play out — remain uncertain.

Final summary

From Santos Limited (ASX:STO) at the top of the market to 88 Energy Limited (ASX:88E) among the speculative micro-caps, the eight companies profiled here show how much variety sits within ASX oil and gas stocks in September 2026. Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX:KAR), Carnarvon Energy Limited (ASX:CVN), Brookside Energy Limited (ASX:BRK), Comet Ridge Ltd (ASX:COI), Strike Energy Limited (ASX:STX) and Beetaloo Energy Australia Limited (ASX:BTL) Fill out a spectrum that runs from producing cash flows and dividends to funded developments and frontier exploration.

The common thread is that each company’s fortunes hinge on specific, datable milestones — a project ramp, a final investment decision, a funding milestone, a drilling result — set against oil, gas and LNG prices that remain outside any company’s control. This article is general information only.