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Indonesia projected to become net LNG importer by 2022
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An operator monitors the loading of LNG tankers into the MT Aquarius tanker berthing at the Donggi Senoro refinery in Uno village, Batu Banggai, Central Sulawesi. The facility is set to strengthen gas supply to power plants in the western part of Java. (JP/Ricky Yudhistira)
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ndonesia is projected to become a net importer of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by 2022 amid increasing domestic demand and declining output at mature gas fields, data from Fitch Group's BMI Research show.
BMI Research has estimated that Indonesia’s gas demand will grow at an average annual rate of 4 percent over the next decade, with the biggest demand coming from the power generation sector.
At the same time, gas supplies are set to fall due to natural declines at various mature gas fields and delays to several major projects.
For example, France's Total E&P Indonesie, the largest gas-producing operator in Indonesia, is projected to see its supply at the Bontang LNG plant in East Kalimantan fall by 10 percent in 2017 on account of spending cuts amid volatility in oil prices and lingering uncertainties over its ownership of the gas-rich Mahakam block.
(Read also: Indonesia to purchase LNG, crude oil directly from UAE)
“This will see Indonesia become a net LNG importer by 2022. [State-owned energy firm] Pertamina has a deal with the United States’ Corpus Christie project starting in 2018 and an agreement with the UAE's Emirates National Oil Company to directly purchase LNG from the latter based on need,” BMI Research stated in its report published on May 24.
“More term deals could be on the horizon as the country's need for gas imports deepens.”
Indonesia exported 3.9 million metric tons of LNG in the first quarter of 2017, falling 7.5 percent year-on-year and down 15 percent below the five-year average. (bbn)
