Vatskalis said after comprehensive reports and detailed consideration of all issues he was confident he'd made the right decision and was excited by the future opportunities the LNG plant was likely to produce for the Territory.

"This government has struck a balance between protecting our environment, and creating jobs and investment for the future of the Territory," Vatskalis said.

"The Exceptional Development Permit I have approved has 41 strict conditions attached to it, all of which must be adhered to by Phillips before, during and after construction of the LNG plant."

Following an extensive public consultation period and public hearing conducted by the Development Consent Authority, a comprehensive and rigorous permit has been produced with a series of requirements covering general conditions, construction stage, dredging and spoil disposal stage, operational phase and decommissioning.

Vatskalis said the public consultation period and hearing resulted in 1642 submissions, with only 19 being individually written submissions. The rest were signed copies of a form letter handed out by lobby groups.

"The public consultation period did not raise any new issues, but rather centred around the concerns we've been hearing for months," said Vatskalis.

"While all of the issues have already been considered in the Environmental Impact Assessment and Public Environment Reports, they have been readdressed in this permit through the 41 conditions we've set down for Phillips."