"Now that the North West Shelf is mature and profitable with record high oil prices, the concession is no longer justified and we have a responsibility to ensure the Australian community receives a fairer share of the benefits associated with resource exploitation in the North West Shelf gas project area," he said.

Ferguson said new gas projects such as Gorgon, Browse and Sunrise were struggling to get off the ground.

He added that a review of Australia's tax regime is being carried out by Treasury Secretary Ken Henry and will consider barriers to investment in large-scale gas projects in Australia as well as the hurdles faced by remote gas developers.

Australia's declining liquid fuel security is a "major concern", Ferguson said, with only around a decade of known oil resources remaining at today's production rates.

He added the Government would review existing retention leases by the end of year to assess their commercial viability in the current market environment.

Companies will be given 12 months to prove the areas are not viable.