Asia's demand for gas grew 9 percent last year
Asian Demand for Liquefied Natural Gas to Grow 60% by 2010, Shell Says (Update1)
By Vladimir Todres
London, Nov. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Asian consumers will increase use of liquefied natural gas by 60 percent in the next decade, spurring development of the region's reserves, according to Royal Dutch/Shell Group.
Consumption of the fuel, in which natural gas is cooled to a liquid and shipped in tankers, was about 70 million metric tons in 1999 and may reach 90 million tons by 2005 and 115 million tons annually by 2010 as China and India join the list of buyers, said Chris Gunner, head of Shell's gas and power business in Japan. Buyers now include Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
"Depending on the view you take on economic and political developments, gas has either a big or a phenomenal growth potential (in Asia)," Gunner told a conference in London.
Asia's demand for gas grew 9 percent last year, as its economic recovery continued, driving up consumption of fuels at power plants. The region's biggest energy consumers are dependent on importing fuels by tankers, because they have few reserves of oil and gas and are situated far from pipeline routes.
Shell wants to dominate the gas market in the region, where it's pushing ahead gas projects from the Russian Far East to Indonesia and Australia.
Last year, Japan accounted for three-quarters of the region's LNG demand, while 17 percent was consumed by Korea and the rest by Taiwan, Gunner said. While use in these countries may follow economic growth, the biggest opportunities lie in China and India. |
