Australia to be world's largest or second-largest LNG exporter by 2018: official
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E-mail Xinhua, April 17, 2013
Australia is expected to become the world's largest or second-largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter by 2018, thanks to the continued expansion of its LNG sector, a top Australian energy official said here on Tuesday.
Addressing the 17th International Conference and Exhibition on Liquefied Natural Gas, which just opened in this fourth largest U. S. city, Australian Minister for Resources and Energy Gary Gray highlighted the rapid development of the LNG industry in the past couple of years.
He recalled that at the 15th LNG conference held in 2007 in Barcelona, Spain, the focus was largely on Qatar's emergence as an LNG powerhouse and shale gas was barely mentioned.
"At that time, Australia's export capacity was just over 15 million tonnes a year and we had just sent the world's first shipment of LNG into China," he noted.
In the next few years, however, Australian production will near 90 million tonnes per annum, according to Gray.
"Over the next five years, we will see a further expansion of the LNG industry with Australia at the epicenter," said the minister, pointing out that 7 of the 12 global projects currently under construction are in Australia.
Noting that world demand for LNG will continue to grow, Gray conceded that new LNG projects around the globe also face some challenges, such as capacity constraints and cost pressure.
The International Energy Agency has predicted a 50-percent rise in global gas demand by 2035.
Gray also stressed the importance of certainty for investors, good governance and public policy on safety, environmental and other regulatory issues in the sound development of the LNG industry.
The International Conference and Exhibition on Liquefied Natural Gas is one of the largest LNG events in the world.
This year's four-day event in Houston has attracted main industry players, traders, decision-makers and experts from around the world to discuss various aspects of the fast-developing LNG industry.
The event, which debuted in 1968, is held once every three years, alternating between producer and consumer countries. The previous one was held in Algeria in 2010. Endi
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