Asian countries should consider building energy stockpile
Asian countries should consider building an energy stockpile to meet growing demand for oil and to prevent Mideast
volatility from disrupting supplies, Malaysia's oil industry chief said. Hassan Marican, president and CEO of the
national oil-and-gas company Petronas, said that Asia's energy needs rise constantly, but most nations have little or
no stockpiling system to protect themselves against the threat of a fuel crisis.
"The traditional producers will not be able to meet this demand," Hassan said on the closing day of the East Asia
Economic Summit, an annual gathering of business and political leaders organized by the World Economic Forum. "We
will be more dependent on the Middle East, so the stability of the Middle East becomes key to this region," Hassan
said. "We need to consider stockpiling for this region."
Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia are Southeast Asia's main oil producers. Only Indonesia is a member of OPEC. Hassan
stressed that there were various factors to consider before launching stockpiles, including logistics and
infrastructure costs and potential environmental problems.
Officials have noted that Japan and South Korea are the region's only oil importers that now hold surplus supplies
for emergencies, while China and Thailand have plans for their own stockpiles modelled on those kept by wealthy
consuming nations such as the United States.
Support for Asian energy stockpiles has risen as oil prices hover at around $ 30 per barrel, as fears mount that US
President George W. Bush plans to attack Iraq to topple Saddam Hussein and that this could fuel instability in the
Middle East. Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong of Singapore told the summit that the world economy could cope with a price
rise of $ 1 to $ 2 a barrel, but that a $ 5 to $ 10 hike could trigger a global recession.
The Philippines proposed at a regional oil conference in Japan last month that a former US military base at Subic
Bay, which has large fuel storage facilities, could be used for stockpiling oil. Thailand said its geographic
position between the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea would be good for building a strategically placed pipeline.
Industry officials estimate that Asia's energy demand will account for about 32 % of the world's energy demand by 2020.
