Former Victorian premier Steve Bracks has been appointed to help solve a dispute blocking a multi-billion-dollar gas project.
Mr Bracks was named as Australia's special representative for the Greater Sunrise gas fields project by the federal government on Tuesday.
The gas field is located off the northwest coast of Australia in the Timor Sea, with East Timor entitled to about 70 per cent of royalties from the project.
While the Timorese government wants the gas from the project piped to a site on its southern coast, Australian energy company Woodside, which controls a third of the project, wants it sent to an established hub in Darwin.
The issue of the location of the gas processing hub has stalled the project for years.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Mr Bracks' role would not be that of an arbiter, but rather the government's representative during negotiations.
"Steve is the best person for this because he has good relations with senior people ... he's been a supporter of (East Timor) independence and their development for decades," she told reporters in Canberra.
Senator Wong said she wanted Mr Bracks to have "very granular discussions" with the parties involved.
"It's very clear to me that people are at the moment stuck in their positions and ... we need to unstick it," she said.
Senator Wong said the gas fields were critical to East Timor's economic development and its resilience in the face of growing tensions in the Pacific.
She said the former premier would play a key role in the project as a special representative.
"Mr Bracks will represent the Australian government and consult with the government of Timor-Leste and other key stakeholders, including the Sunrise joint venture," Senator Wong said.
"He has deep knowledge of Timor-Leste and a close relationship with its people and leaders as a result of his close engagement over many years."
The foreign minister was in Dili in September for talks with East Timor's president Jose Ramos-Horta, which included discussions on the gas project.
Dr Ramos-Horta had previously called on the federal government to help bring the Greater Sunrise project to his country.
He said the project would allow the country to become another dynamic economy on par with Dubai or Singapore.
