M'sia to import gas in 2013
Published: Jun 6, 2011 11:29 AM | Updated: Jun 6, 2011 11:32 AM
Malaysia, the No.2 liquefied natural gas exporter, expects its first LNG imports in 2013, a presentation by a senior government official showed on Monday, as power generation demand rises in tandem with economic growth.
Malaysia, the No.2 liquefied natural gas exporter, expects its first LNG imports in 2013, a presentation by a senior government official showed on Monday, as power generation demand rises in tandem with economic growth.
That shift in LNG trading means Malaysia will likely ship less to top buyers in Asia, leading to less export revenues for the trade-reliant Southeast Asian country and forcing its customers to look elsewhere.
The presentation by government minister Idris Jala at an industry conference gave no further details on its future LNG import needs in the next few years.
"I think you are going to increasingly see Malaysia become a portfolio player because it reduces their own contract risk," Di Brookman, an analyst with CLSA in Sydney said.
"They are having to import gas to make up for what is increasingly a hard feedstock to find."
Malaysia last month raised natural gas prices to cope with higher demand and a ballooning subsidy bill.
As its domestic gas needs grow, Malaysia's state oil firm Petronas will likely begin to depend more heavily on a global portfolio of gas supplies to meet its existing contracts with major buyers like Japan and Korea.
Malaysia is the top supplier of LNG to Japan, the world's number one importer of the supercooled fuel. South Korea also depends heavily on Malaysia, its third largest supplier after Qatar and Oman, for its LNG supply.
Petronas will likely draw on supplies from its Gladstone LNG project in Australia and their newly acquired stake in Energy Resources Corp's Canadian shale gas assets to fill both domestic and export needs, Brookman said.
State power firm Tenaga Nasional has said Malaysia's electricity demand is set to rise 5 percent this year as the economy expands. In the first quarter of 2011, gross domestic product rose 4.6 percent on year.
Malaysia relies on a mix of coal, LNG and hydro power for its electricity needs. Capacity expansion is vital for Malaysia because the country would have to tap into its reserve power capacity in 2015 if no new generating sources are established by then.
Higher power demand will lead to less export earnings for Malaysia, which derives about 5-7 percent of it total exports
from LNG shipments.
- Reuters
That shift in LNG trading means Malaysia will likely ship less to top buyers in Asia, leading to less export revenues for the trade-reliant Southeast Asian country and forcing its customers to look elsewhere.
The presentation by government minister Idris Jala at an industry conference gave no further details on its future LNG import needs in the next few years.
"I think you are going to increasingly see Malaysia become a portfolio player because it reduces their own contract risk," Di Brookman, an analyst with CLSA in Sydney said.
"They are having to import gas to make up for what is increasingly a hard feedstock to find."
Malaysia last month raised natural gas prices to cope with higher demand and a ballooning subsidy bill.
As its domestic gas needs grow, Malaysia's state oil firm Petronas will likely begin to depend more heavily on a global portfolio of gas supplies to meet its existing contracts with major buyers like Japan and Korea.
Malaysia is the top supplier of LNG to Japan, the world's number one importer of the supercooled fuel. South Korea also depends heavily on Malaysia, its third largest supplier after Qatar and Oman, for its LNG supply.
Petronas will likely draw on supplies from its Gladstone LNG project in Australia and their newly acquired stake in Energy Resources Corp's Canadian shale gas assets to fill both domestic and export needs, Brookman said.
State power firm Tenaga Nasional has said Malaysia's electricity demand is set to rise 5 percent this year as the economy expands. In the first quarter of 2011, gross domestic product rose 4.6 percent on year.
Malaysia relies on a mix of coal, LNG and hydro power for its electricity needs. Capacity expansion is vital for Malaysia because the country would have to tap into its reserve power capacity in 2015 if no new generating sources are established by then.
Higher power demand will lead to less export earnings for Malaysia, which derives about 5-7 percent of it total exports
from LNG shipments.
- Reuters
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