Regional LNG: Australia to triple LNG exports by 2020

Australia was on track to triple its liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports by 2020 to account for 30 percent of exports in the Asia Pacific region, a government official said on Tuesday.

Australia has less than 10 percent of the region's export market but plans to increase output capacity from just below 12 million tonnes a year to 40 million annually by 2025, said John Griffiths, director general of offshore resources at the ministry of industry, tourism and resources.

Five new projects already in the works for the next six years, he said.

"I am confident that we will meet our goal of 30 percent of LNG exports in the Asia Pacific region by 2020," Griffiths said during a visit to Paris.

Australia only has one LNG processing plant, the North West Shelf joint venture, which has four trains and is operated by Woodside .

The plant will supply the first LNG cargo to be delivered to China, to the southern Guangdong province, by the middle of next year.

Japan has been traditionally a strong market for Australian LNG under long term contracts, but Griffiths said his country was looking to supply more LNG to South Korea and to other provinces in China.

Further afield, Australian LNG exports could also land in Chile, Mexico and the U.S. West Coast, although Griffiths noted that the government does not control the destination of its sales.(*)