ExxonMobil's Lee R. Raymond Discusses Critical Role of LNG in Meeting North America's Energy Challenges
2003年12月18日 - 2:50AM
RNSを含む英国規制内ニュース (英語)
Exxon Mobil Corporation
Address at Washington, D.C. Ministerial Summit Focuses on Harnessing
Full Potential of LNG
In his address today to the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)
Ministerial Summit in Washington, D.C., ExxonMobil Chairman and CEO
Lee R. Raymond outlined a number of challenges to harnessing the full
potential of LNG, calling for consistent and complete policies that,
when encouraging the use of natural gas, must also address the need
for additional gas supplies, including LNG. Stating that most of the
gas North America will consume six years from now is not yet in
production, Raymond emphasized that economic development of diverse
supplies is needed to meet growing energy demand and to replace
inevitable declines in existing production.
Raymond said consumers need all the gas they can get from all
possible sources, referencing ExxonMobil's $12 billion project with
Qatar Petroleum to supply LNG to the United States for a 25-year
period and the company's long-term 1.2 bcfd LNG production activities
in Indonesia to supply Asia Pacific markets. "Consuming countries need
to recognize that they have an important role to play in facilitating
timely energy development," Raymond added. "They can do this by
creating reasonable regulatory regimes that will allow facilities to
be designed and built without undue delay or unnecessary cost and
relying on free competition and market solutions to meet future
demand."
Raymond asserted that countries can facilitate development by
fostering an environment conducive to large, long-term investments in
the infrastructure needed to meet growing demand in Asia Pacific,
Europe, and North America, along with provision of a stable legal
framework, predictable tax structure, sanctity of contracts, an
impartial court system, respect for intellectual property, elimination
of duties, transparency in procurement, and workforce security.
"Working together," Raymond said, "governments and national oil
companies can play a constructive part by encouraging and facilitating
the growth in capacity that will be crucial to satisfying the world's
demand for energy over the coming decades." From an environmental
standpoint, he noted, "The benefits of natural gas make it attractive
for both the manufacturing sector and for power generation throughout
the world."
In the U. S., Raymond said, "Government agencies at all levels of
governance must rise to the challenge and facilitate terminal
development," adding cooperative relationships between project
developers and local, state, and federal government entities are
prerequisite for the efficient permitting and approval of new LNG
infrastructure being pursued by ExxonMobil and other companies.
Acknowledging that LNG technology is new and potentially uncertain to
those outside of the industry, Raymond stressed, "Nothing is more
important to our industry than the safety and health of our employees
and the people with whom we come in contact in the conduct of our
business. We need to communicate that message to the public, make
clear our commitment to operating safely, and discuss the management
systems we have in place to ensure that the highest standards are
met."
In addition to operations integrity, Raymond recognized technology
as a critical component of LNG's successful future, particularly in
regard to the efficiencies and cost savings it continues to generate.
In conjunction with joint-venture partners, ExxonMobil's engineers
have helped build some of the world's largest LNG plants, including
two in Qatar, which will ship nearly 10 million tons of LNG per year.
Utilization of new gas technology has contributed to efficiency gains
in liquefaction, transportation, and regasification. Recent advances
in LNG ship size and terminal tank design have produced cost savings
of more than 30 percent since the late 1990s.
"We must work for a future in which the immediate development of
new resources and flexibility in fuel choices provide more balance to
the North American natural gas supply and demand equation," Raymond
concluded. "With so much at stake, failure is not an option."
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT: Estimates, expectations, and business plans
in this release are forward-looking statements. Actual future results,
including project plans, schedules, and cost; LNG production; and
technological advances could differ materially due to changes in
market conditions affecting the oil and gas industry; political
developments; technical or operating factors; and other factors
discussed under the heading "Factors Affecting Future Results"
included in Item 1 of ExxonMobil's most recent Form 10-K and posted on
our website (www.exxonmobil.com). References to quantities of oil and
gas include amounts that are not yet classified as proved reserves but
that we believe will be produced in the future.