Australia oil output to peak in '08, then fall-govt

SYDNEY, March 4 (Reuters) - Australia's oil production is forecast to rise 7 percent this year as new fields come onstream, but is seen falling as soon as 2009, a government report said on Tuesday.

Crude production is forecast to increase to 483,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2008/09, versus 449,190 bpd last year, boosted by new projects at the Vincent and Angel fields in Western Australia, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) said in a quarterly report.

"Beyond 2008/09, Australia's oil production is projected to decline at a moderate rate as falling production from some mature fields offsets anticipated new additions to capacity," ABARE said.

The value of Australian crude oil and condensate exports is projected to increase to A$11.4 billion ($10.6 billion) by 2009/2010 and then to fall to A$10.4 billion in 2012-2013, ABARE said.

While Australia will continue to be a net importer of oil and condensate, the bureau forecast exports to rise 14 percent to around 17,062 bpd in 2008/09 and 7 percent to 18,247 bpd in 2009/10.

Australia's exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) were forecast to rise 14 percent to 16.9 million tonnes in 2008/09 and surge to around 25.2 million tonnes by 2011/2012, thanks to production from new fields such as Woodside Petroleum Ltd's (WPL.AX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) A$12 billion Pluto project off Western Australia.

But the bureau warned that rising raw material prices, a shortage of skilled labour and longer waiting times for equipment were expected to be an obstacle to LNG project developments, potentially resulting in major delays. ($1=A$1.07) (Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by James Thornhill)