25-06-2013

Creating integrated and sustainable gas markets to fuel Asia

Asia’s growing reliance on imports and long-term contracts has raised doubts over the sustainability of its gas market. As the fastest growing gas market, the big question is, is the region able to move from it’s traditionally oil linked price index to a more competitive and sustainable market?

As Singapore’s (Liquefied Natural Gas) LNG terminal, the first open-access, multi user LNG terminal in Asia,capable of importing and re-exporting LNG from multiple suppliers, begins its commercial operations, the Energy Market Authority’s (EMA) has posed the key question: should it introduce competitive licenses to multiple LNG suppliers?

The country’s regulators are paving the way for the island state to become a trading hub for the region, and come this October, as part of the annual Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW), the 2nd Annual Gas Asia Summit (GAS) will be addressing the challenges and opportunities for Asia to create its own integrated and sustainable gas market.

GAS will take place from 30 October – 1 November at the Marina Bay Sands, the Summit features the only natural gas and LNG focused programme within the SIEW. Following on from the success of the 2012 event, which attracted over 200 attendees from the across the region, this year’s programme will examine Asia’s buyer and seller dynamics and offer expert insights into the necessary requirements for creating a more integrated natural gas market, reflecting how to achieve sustainability in demand and supply of this dynamic region.

Leading industry representatives including Duncan van Bergen, General Manager Global Gas & LNG Market Development, Shell Upstream International; Abdulla Al Hussaini, Marketing Director Qatargas; Dr Mitchell Baer, Director, Office of Policy and International Affairs, The United States Department of Energy; Dr Anthony Barker, General Manager, BG Group; Yasushi Sakakibara, Deputy General Manager, LNG Contracts, Gas Resources Department, Tokyo Gas Co. Ltd; Moon Ming Seah, Chief Executive Officer, Pavilion Energy Pte Ltd, are set to address the Summit in October.

The Summit has also confirmed support from Cheniere, China LNG Association, Association of Process Industry (ASPRI), International Project Finance Association, ASEAN Council on Petroleum (ASCOPE) and GEP APAC.

With eyes on the region’s major gas buyers and importers, the Summit will also feature a panel discussion on the commercial implications of choosing suppliers for importing LNG. In a recent interview, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pakistan GasPort Limited, Iqbal Z. Ahmed spoke on Pakistan’s energy mix and gas market, “Pakistan has to switchover from expensive, imported furnace oil to less expensive, imported LNG to minimise the energy shortfall. This will be the quickest and relatively cost effective solution, as part of a comprehensive framework to improve the country's energy mix.” Mr. Ahmed will speak on the panel alongside representatives from Singapore LNG Corporation, Gail India Limited and Gujarat State Petroleum Limited.