Progress made on SEA gas pipeline

Progress made on SEA gas pipeline

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (AP): Southeast Asian governments have agreed to hasten planning of a natural gas pipeline spanning the region and expect to sign a memorandum of understanding on the project next year, officials said.

Energy ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations group discussed the massive infrastructure project at annual talks held Thursday in Brunei.

Ministers agreed to direct senior officials to expedite negotiations on a draft agreement on the pipeline and have it ready for ministers to sign at their next meeting in Bali, Indonesia, said Awang Abdul Rahman, Brunei's minister of Industry and Primary Resources who hosted the meeting.

Over the next couple of decades, state-owned oil companies of ASEAN countries plan to link together thousands of kilometers (miles) of pipe - both underwater and on land - to ensure a constant supply of natural gas for the region.

Critics say the plan is too ambitious and that internal unrest in Indonesia - the region's biggest economy and largest natural gas producer - and disputes between other ASEAN counties will scuttle the plan.

Under the ASEAN Plan of Action on Energy Cooperation, Southeast Asian countries are seeking agreement on the gas pipeline, a region-wide electricity grid and other issues including the energy efficiency and the environment.

"There have been significant advancements in the plan of action including in the areas of the ASEAN power grid, the trans- ASEAN gas pipeline project and the EU-ASEAN energy cooperation program," the ministers said in a joint statement released after Thursday's meeting.

Awang said ministers also reaffirmed their commitment to promote energy efficiency in the region and to intensify private sector participation in a regional energy agreement.

"In this regard, we welcomed the first U.S.-ASEAN Business Council Consultation with senior officials on energy that exchanged views on energy business in the region," the statement said.

Ministers also praised Japan for its cooperation with the association's senior energy officials, which would help lead to greater energy security and a "sustainable energy future" in the region, the statement said.

Awang said the ministers had agreed to submit a report on their discussions to ASEAN leaders when they meet November 5-6 in Brunei.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.