A version of this article was published in the Oil & Gas Journal, Volume 110, Issue 2.
Already witness to a number of changes in recent years, the global LNG industry in 2012 is likely to see further changes as unconventional LNG export projects begin to come on line, new countries begin LNG imports, and new gas discoveries make export projects possible in new regions of the globe.
The rapid developments in unconventional natural gas, especially North American shale gas and Australian coalseam gas (CSG), have changed the LNG playing field. New discoveries off East Africa should propel Mozambique and perhaps Tanzania into the top ranks of the world’s LNG exporters. In addition, the number of countries planning import terminals continues to expand rapidly, whether these be of traditional onshore or the newer floating or offshore type. For a variety of reasons natural gas gained exceptional acceptance in 2011 as the fuel of choice, with updated predictions now proclaiming it will overtake coal as the world’s second largest energy source by 2030 . . . or sooner.
With numerous technological, commercial and geopolitical factors influencing a global LNG market in flux, the LNG industry surely will grapple with the following questions in 2012...
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