KUALA LUMPUR�Natural gas development has enormous potential to strengthen the economies and improve the lives of people throughout Asia, Unocal Chairman Roger C. Beach said here Monday.
Speaking to delegates to the Fifth Asian Oil & Gas Conference, Beach said natural gas development is a win-win situation for producing and consuming countries alike. For producing countries, natural gas development can create large, indigenous energy supplies, which can build national wealth and generate royalties and taxes, as well as potential income from foreign exchange, he was quoted by the Malaysian news agency (Bernama) as saying.
Beach noted that natural gas development can reduce national dependence on energy imports from the Middle East and other distant sources. He said natural gas provides a clean, low-cost and efficient way to generate power for homes and industries, adding low-cost power accelerates the growth of new business and industry, including electronics and manufacturing.
Beach maintained that new technologies would substantially reduce the geologic risks involved in finding new gas resources. New technologies and processes have made it much easier to confirm natural gas reserves today than a number of years ago, he said. Thus, Beach said, certification of an adequate resource base should raise the confidence of potential consumers and stimulate market development.