Southeast Asia is on track to vastly expand its gas-fired power plant and liquefied natural gas (LNG) import capacity, threatening its green energy transition, a report said yesterday.
The region’s plans project a doubling of gas-fired power capacity and an 80 percent increase in LNG import capacity, said Global Energy Monitor (GEM), a US-based non-governmental organization.
Natural gas emits less carbon dioxide than most other fossil fuels, and so it is often considered a “transition fuel” that can help economies reduce emissions without sacrificing growth, but methane leaks from the gas industry are a said to be a key component of climate change.
Photo: Reuters
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has said that LNG should only have a “limited role” in moving away from coal.
“Beating coal on environmental grounds sets a low bar for natural gas, given there are lower-emissions and lower-cost alternatives to both fuels,” the IEA said in 2019.
Leading the LNG expansion in the region are Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, GEM said.
The area already has enough large-scale solar and wind capacity in development to cover nearly two-thirds of the projected increase in energy demand by 2030, GEM said.
However, renewables potential is unevenly distributed across the region, with some countries better-placed to harness wind or solar than others, it added.
Grid infrastructure regionally is also a barrier, with upgrades needed to facilitate renewable integration, it said.
That might make LNG appear more attractive, particularly where coal or diesel power plants can be converted, it said.
However, “ramping up gas production is not a long-term solution,” said Warda Ajaz, project manager for GEM’s Asia Gas Tracker. “Meeting demand with cost-effective, renewable sources insulates the region from volatile gas prices and is a greener path forward.”
The report warns that international finance is encouraging gas capacity expansion over renewables, in part by offering countries such as Indonesia and Vietnam money to convert plants to LNG.
“Most of the in-development gas infrastructure capacity in Southeast Asian countries has not yet entered the construction phase,” the report said. “There is still time to change course and divert investments toward renewable resources and regional grid integration.”
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including