‘India set to overtake China in energy use’

HE al-Attiyah along with HE the Minister for Energy and Industry, Dr Mohamed bin Saleh al-Sada; Economic Adviser to HH the Emir, Dr Ibrahim B Ibrahim; ExxonMobil energy manager Rob Gardner and Gulf Intelligence managing partner Sean Evers, also the event moderator, at the “ExxonMobil 2013 Energy Outlook Forum” yesterday. Picture: Jayaram Korambil

By Pratap John/Chief Business Reporter

India will emerge as one of the largest global energy markets overtaking even China in future in view of the country’s growing population, according to HE Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah, President of Administrative Control and Transparency Authority.

“I believe one of the major challenges for India in future will be to meet the rising energy needs of a growing population. The projections are that over the next several years, India’s population will exceed that of China,” al-Attiyah told Gulf Times yesterday.

Currently, more than 1bn people in the world do not have access to electricity. And many of those people live in China and India.

“I understand the provision of clean energy is high on India’s priority,” al-Attiyah said referring to the country’s huge investment in LNG regasification facilities in Dahej (Gujarat) and Kochi (Kerala)  among other states.

He said the Kochi LNG terminal at Puthuvype was fast nearing completion. Once this facility becomes operational, the prospects of reaching gas to many southern states including Tamil Nadu and Karnataka besides Kerala are bright.

In future, the gas supply may extend even to Goa, he said.

“I hope the Kochi terminal will propel economic growth in Southern India,” al-Attiyah said.

The Indian liquefied natural gas industry was mostly concentrated in Gujarat state because of the Dahej LNG terminal. Kochi would hopefully change that, al-Attiyah said.

He saw gas consumption increasing in the Middle East, GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) region in particular, in the coming years.

“Currently, the GCC countries consume more crude oil for power generation. The disadvantage here is that crude oil is expensive and throws up environmental issues,” al-Attiyah said.

“Already there is an LNG market in Dubai. Fujairah in the UAE is setting up a new LNG regasification facility. Similar facilities are also coming up in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. I see a greater consumption for natural gas in the Middle East, particularly in the GCC region,” he said.

Underscoring the role of vision and long-term planning in the success of Qatar’s growth, al-Attiyah said, “Qatar’s current position as the world’s largest supplier of liquefied natural gas was grounded in the knowledge many years ago that markets all over the world would require more secure and reliable sources of energy. Thanks to the vision of HH the Emir, the strategic direction offered by the General Secretariat of Development Planning, and the strong partnership we have formed over the years with ExxonMobil, we were able to fully realise our position as a major contributor in the global energy industry.”