Singapore Government committed to growing energy sector
Ronnie Lim, Business Times 22 Oct 08;
THE energy industry is entering unchartered territory and the rules are constantly changing, S Iswaran, Senior Minister of State (Trade & Industry), said, adding that 'the current financial turmoil certainly has not helped'.
He was addressing oil industry executives at a Platts' Asian energy companies' ranking awards dinner here yesterday, as oil prices cooled to around US$72 a barrel - or half July's peak of over US$147 - on worries that global oil demand will plummet as economies go into recession.
Mr Iswaran said the tumultuous financial events 'have caught many by surprise and have exposed the true uncertainty we face in this complex, interconnected world'.
While governments and policymakers will move quickly and decisively to address these issues, the volatility in financial markets is expected to persist for some time to come, he warned.
'More than ever, we must keep the faith in the markets and ensure that they work well - for continued flows of information, transparency and price discovery.'
This is where energy information organisations like Platts play a vital role, he said, as its clarity and independent benchmarking and analysis are key to the workings of global, competitive energy markets.
Singapore, he said, has had an over 20-year relationship with Platts, whose pricing platform had helped attract many oil trading companies here.
Today, the Republic has grown to become one of the world's premier bunker ports and the oil product pricing hub for the Asia-Pacific, with over US$300 billion in physical oil and US$600 billion in oil derivatives traded here last year.
Mr Iswaran said that while the global demand for oil may soften in the near term, the backdrop for global energy resources will remain one of tightening supply and rising demand.
Going forward, Singapore will face increasing competition as new refining capacity in China, India and the Middle East comes on stream over the next few years, he said.
But the government remains committed to growing this sector and its value-add through greater complexity, he stressed. This will be achieved 'by leveraging on our strengths across the value chain in petrochemicals, logistics, distribution and trading. Our fundamentals are strong and this will ensure that we remain competitive'.
In this year's Platts awards, Chinese oil giant Petrochina again topped its Asia top 250 rankings with a 30 per cent jump in revenues and a one-third rise in asset value. Second was China's Sinopec, and third India's Reliance Industries.
Another Chinese company, China Resources Power Holdings, was ranked No 1 among Asia's fastest-growing companies.
