ENERGY SECURITY, AFFORDABILITY REMAIN HIGH PRIORITIES IN SEA - MGA PRESIDENT

KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 (Bernama) -- The Southeast Asia (SEA) region continues to face challenges in finding a balance between energy security, affordability and sustainability, as the need to expand clean and reliable energy access in the region remains critically important.

Malaysian Gas Association (MGA) president, Abdul Aziz Othman said even though the region has achieved more than 90 per cent electricity penetration, about 60 million people still lacked access to electricity.

“Meanwhile, an estimated 230 million people remain reliant on solid biomass as cooking fuel," he said in a statement in conjunction with the 28th World Gas Conference (WGC2022), organised by the International Gas Union (IGU) in South Korea.

Recognising the pivotal role that natural gas plays in delivering clean energy and in economic recovery, Abdul Aziz said the region has continued to invest in natural gas production and delivery infrastructure, despite economic challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He added that construction of several regasification terminals (RGT) in ASEAN is ongoing to continue to expand the distribution networks in the region.

He noted that natural gas, the cleanest fossil fuel, will remain an important key source of energy, especially in Southeast Asia where the energy market is expected to grow rapidly.

“As a dependable and clean fuel that serves all the energy-consuming sectors, natural gas will be expected to play a prominent role in providing cleaner and more reliable energy sources,” said Abdul Aziz, who is also the South and SEA Regional Coordinator for the IGU.

He said as the region is moving away from coal, most ASEAN countries have committed to the National Determined Contributions (NDCs) with unconditional targets towards achieving its net-zero commitment by 2050.

“Natural gas will continue to be significantly needed for power generation and will play a long-term role in providing energy access and security to the nation, at the same time helping the region to meet its improved greenhouse carbon emissions reduction target," he added.

-- BERNAMA