Energy delegates from the 21 APEC economies attended the two-day APGAS Forum on September 1- 2 at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre, Western Australia, to discuss policy issues, such as energy security, the trading of gas and LNG and environmental and major market issues.

Forum chair and BHP Billiton vice president, Bret Mattes, said the inaugural APGAS Forum had provided a historic opportunity to take a constructive approach to resolving the region’s energy challenges.

“Continuing growth in energy consumption has underscored the issue of energy security to APEC economies [and] the risk of energy supply disruptions,” Mattes said.

Western Australian energy minister Alan Carpenter told the forum that the state was likely to be exporting about 50 million tonnes of LNG a year - about four to five times present volumes - by 2015.

Reaching this target would require successful development of several major new projects. These include Chevron/Shell/ExxonMobil Gorgon project; BHP Billiton's Pilbara LNG plant to be built at Onslow; Woodside's recently announced Pluto development; and a sixth North West Shelf LNG train. In addition, ConocoPhillips' LNG plant in the Northern Territory is due to start producing early next year.

One of the major markets for Australia’s increased LNG output would be North America. US Department of Energy deputy assistant secretary for oil and gas James Slutz said American LNG imports were likely to rise to 60 million tonnes a year by about 2015.

Gas was providing about half the heating needs of US families and 90% of electricity growth, and US domestic gas production could not keep up with demand growth, according to Slutz.

“The US will rely more and more on imports," he said.

Recommendations from the forum will be made to the APEC’s Energy Ministers Meeting in South Korea on October 19. They are scheduled to be adopted by the APEC heads of state in February next year.

APEC said the key points discussed included:

• Natural gas has a vital role in providing a clean source of energy over at least the next 40 years;

• globalisation of the natural gas trade will change the dynamics of natural gas trade in the APEC region, with the safety and security of trade being key drivers of gas development;

• accelerating market growth will see traded LNG volumes double by 2015, challenging the traditional terms of LNG trade and requiring ongoing dialogue and improved collaboration between importers and exporters;

• a looming shortage of skilled human resources in the industry could impede the rate of development of new projects;

• governments have a critical role to play in streamlining and facilitating the approval process to bring additional infrastructure and capacity online; and

• the continued safety of the industry is of paramount importance for all participants.