Financial Times: LNG: burning need

Australia can breathe a sigh of relief. As Japan prepares for its post-nuclear energy era its appetite for Australian liquefied natural gas has been confirmed. This week, a joint venture between Japan’s Mitsui and Mitsubishi (Mimi) has agreed to buy almost a sixth of Woodside Petroleum’s Browse liquefied natural gas project in Australia. The $2bn price secured by the Perth-based oil and gas group values the project at a third more than original bets. That is one sign, then, that Australia’s costly investments in LNG are paying off. It was lucky this time. But the US shale gas revolution remains a threat. 

Granted, the US’s gas ambitions centre on cheap inputs for its own industrial renaissance. But its LNG export projects are going ahead. The US could export some 3bn cubic feet per day of LNG by 2017, equal to a third of Australia’s expected export volume by that date. Further, gas from Alaska and Canada, once destined for the US (until its shale gas boom), could end up in Asia. MORE (Registration required)