ASEAN Secretariat, Jakarta, 5 Oct. – Speaking at the Forum on Trans-ASEAN Gas Pipeline and Power Grids in Kuala Lumpur today, Rodolfo C. Severino, Secretary-General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, affirms ASEAN’s energy security as "a core of the concerns of ASEAN."

According to Severino, ASEAN has proven reserves of 22 billion barrels of oil, 227 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 46 billion tons of coal, 234 gigawatts of hydropower, and 20 gigawatts of geothermal capacity. ASEAN accounts for two percent of the world’s oil reserves and three percent of global coal and gas reserves. In 1996, ASEAN contributed about four percent and consumed about 2.5 percent of the world’s energy production.

Energy makes up a large chunk of the export earnings of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Malaysia. These three ASEAN countries account for 55 percent of the world’s production of liquefied natural gas. Singapore is a leading oil-refining and -trading hub. It is the third largest refining center after Rotterdam and Houston and ranks third behind New York and London as an international oil-trading hub.

ASEAN already has the fourth largest electricity network in Asia, after China, Japan and India, with installed capacity of 76 gigawatts, which is now expected to resume its rapid growth. ASEAN can profitably utilize up to US$90 billion between now and 2005 in capital expenditures for power generation, transmission and distribution. In addition to the 5,565 kilometers already built in ASEAN, some 7,000 kilometers of gas pipelines are being planned in anticipation of the expected demand for natural gas of 38-69 billion cubic meters per year by 2020.

Severino stated that, infrastructure facilities in transport, communications, and energy, are "the lifeblood and nervous system of an integrated regional economy. They make trade in goods and services and capital flows possible and easier. Their availability and efficiency are a major factor in investment decisions. They themselves are the subjects and objects of trade and investment. Their construction and operation stimulate economic activity."

Severino said that "such mammoth requirements offer great opportunities for profitable investments" as he recalled the decision of the ASEAN heads of government in December last year to accelerate the realization of trans-ASEAN energy networks, specifically the ASEAN Power Grid and the Trans-ASEAN Gas Pipeline. ASEAN aims to establish fourteen power interconnection projects to be developed to form the bulk of the regional grid.