Demand for crude oil in Asia has recovered rapidly from the regional economic slump and should near 30 percent of global demand in 2020, spurring new energy investment, OPEC's secretary general said Wednesday.
Adressing the Indonesian International Oil and Gas and Energy Conference here, Rilwanu Lukman, the secretary general of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, said Asian demand was already around 25 percent of world demand.
"This figure is expected to rise in the next 20 years to over 28 percent," Lukman said, adding that "these projections clearly warrant long-term investment commitment to the region."
OPEC figures showed the "potential for a rapid increase in energy demand" in a region where per capita energy consumption is well below that of developed countries.
OPEC members, particularly those from the Middle East, had shown an increased willingness to invest in Asian energy projects.
Lukman cited a 450 million dollar investment in oil exploration in Indonesia and Saudi Aramco's stake in South Korea's Ssang Yong Oil Corp.
The Abu Dhabi-based International Petroleum Investment Corporation had also recently acquired 50 percent of Hyundai Oil, also of South Korea, and Kuwait's Foreign Petroleum Exploration Co., was also ploughing money into projects in Malaysia, China and Pakistan.The investments, Lukman said, were a part of OPEC members' "trend towards increasing foreign investment." –AFP.
©--Agence France Presse.
© 2000 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
