LNG terminal will boost energy security: Iswaran

The upcoming liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal on Jurong Island will be a major step towards strengthening Singapore's energy security, according to Mr S. Iswaran on Thursday.

The Second Minister for Trade and Industry told a conference here that the plant's opening late this quarter would be an "important milestone".

"It will allow us to access LNG from global gas markets, to diversify our energy resources beyond the region and to benefit from trends in the global gas market," he added.

Singapore has relied almost entirely on piped natural gas for its power needs, so developing an LNG terminal is key in diversifying the country's energy sources and strengthening security and resilience, noted Mr Iswaran.

The terminal will open with two LNG tanks with a total capacity of 3.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). A third tank is expected to be added by the end of the year, increasing the terminal's capacity to 6mtpa.

A fourth tank will eventually be completed but Mr Iswaran did not reveal when it would be added to the terminal. This will boost the terminal's capacity to 9mpta.

Singapore's total demand for gas will likely reach 15mpta by 2024, he added.

The expansion will also present more business opportunities for trading, break-bulk services and bunkering in the LNG sector, noted Mr Iswaran, who was speaking at the KPMG Global Energy Conference - Asia Pacific at the Ritz-Carlton.

The conference also included the launch of KPMG's Global Energy Institute for the Asia-Pacific region.

The institute will help executives in the region's energy sector transfer knowledge and help in other areas, said KPMG.

Economic Development Board executive director of professional services Kelvin Wong said: "Firms like KPMG can centralise their Asia-Pacific knowledge resources in Singapore and leverage the base of sophisticated lead demand here to develop new knowledge and consulting solutions."

Mr Iswaran said the institute "will be an important and valuable addition to Singapore's energy ecosystem".

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