Asian offshore oil reserves to meet energy needs: Expert
Afp, Singapore
Deep offshore waters in the Asia-Pacific region hold significant oil and gas reserves which can go a long way in meeting the region's future energy needs, an industry expert said Wednesday. Paul Hillegeist, president of US energy consultancy Quest Offshore Resources, said the region has an estimated 12 billion barrels of oil-equivalent in its deep waters. "So they are well placed to see increased activity ... global deep water potential is significant," Hillegeist said at an energy conference here. Another consultant earlier told the conference that oil production in Southeast Asia will peak over the next few years despite growth spots in Vietnam and Thailand. "The key point is of course in spite of all this growth, we are getting to a peak of Southeast Asia production around 2012 or 2015," Michael Smith, chief executive of EnergyFiles Ltd, said. But Hillegeist said looking to the deep water resource will help meet the region's oil and gas needs in the face of expected strong demand spurred by rapid economic development. "I think it's certainly going to help. The bottom line is most countries are going to be net importers (of energy)," Hillegeist said.
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