Page 12 - GLNG Week 41

GLNG COMMENTARY GLNG

The Australian
government believes
that the country’s LNG
exports could help
reduce global GHG
emissions.

Taking heart to new Australian LNG projects the government
APPEA noted that while the fallout from needed to maintain a stable and competitive tax
COVID-19 would be felt for several years, Asian regime while avoiding the risks of adopting
gas demand would continue to provide eco- interventionist gas market policies.
nomic opportunities for Australia. His comments come just weeks after
The body’s CEO, Andrew McConville, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison
pointed to the IEA’s prediction that gas demand announced a number of natural gas-focused
under STEPS would grow by 14% above 2019 measures intended to “reset” the East Coast
levels by 2030 and by 30% to 2040, with growth gas market.
concentrated in Asia. SDS, meanwhile, will see While the government has said it wants
Asian demand expand by 52% over 2019 levels greater investment by the private sector, Morri-
to 2040, with India and China driving the surge. son flagged his intent in mid-September to have
Under the latter scenario, carbon capture, use the state fund critical domestic energy projects
and storage (CCUS), coal-to-gas switching and if investors delay too long. At the same time,
the rise of low-carbon gases are each expected to the prime minister also raised the prospect of a
be key to the gas sector’s contribution in lower- national gas reserve mechanism.
ing emissions. These efforts are all geared towards driving
McConville also underscored the impor- economic recovery through a gas-fed renais-
tance of Australian gas in the climate change sance in Australian manufacturing, a dream the
battle, pointing to government estimates that upstream has been particularly tepid over, given These efforts
the country’s LNG exports could help reduce the rising calls from domestic buyers for cheaper
global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by up gas. are all geared
to 169mn tonnes of CO2e. The Australian industry faces an uncertain towards driving
Even under the NZE2050 outlook, in which future, dominated by calls for both a greater reli-
global gas demand is anticipated to fall below ance on renewables over all fossil fuels as well as economic
2019 levels in 2040, McConville remained cheaper supplies of natural gas to help struggling
upbeat, with growth in key Asian demand cen- manufacturers find their feet. recovery through
tres still expected to provide opportunities. The IEA, meanwhile, has flagged up the need
The executive added that while the WEO for gas players to invest in scrubbing the emis- a gas-fed
highlighted seismic shifts currently underway sions from their production, pointing to tech- renaissance
in the global energy market, gas remained an nologies such as CCUS.
“important part of a cleaner energy future”. One Australian developer to have appar- in Australian
“These outlooks are more uncertain that in ently heard the call already is Cooper Energy,
previous outlooks, but still present opportunities announcing this week that it has become manufacturing.
for Australia to see a continued stream of high Australia’s first carbon-neutral domestic gas
paying, highly skilled jobs, export dollars and producer by fully offsetting its financial year
revenue for governments for decades,” McCo- 2020-2021 emissions. With commercially viable
nville said. CCUS unavailable as yet, Australia’s producers
may need to follow in Cooper’s footsteps if they
What next? are to weather the turbulent times that likely lie
McConville argued that for investors to commit ahead for the industry.™

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 41 16•October•2020