RI to hold LNG talks with China, Korea

Indonesia will be seeking to do some energy business of its own when President Megawati Soekarnoputri-- accompanied by Minister of Eenergy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro among other ministers -- visits China, the two Koreas and India over a two-week period starting this Sunday.

In China, Purnomo said on Friday that he hoped for discussions on the Tangguh project. Tangguh in Indonesia's Papua province is on a shortlist of three for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply deal for China's first LNG terminal in its southern province of Guangdong.

China is seeking to import 3 million tons of LNG annually to feed Guangdong LNG terminal starting 2005.

Indonesia is world's biggest LNG exporter.

LNG will also figure prominently in South Korea, the world's second-largest LNG importer after Japan.

Indonesia doesn't want to lose its position as Seoul's biggest LNG supplier when existing contracts are transferred in a Korean privatisation exercise now underway. Indonesia has a deal expiring in 2007 to supply 2.3 million tonnes of LNG annually, and Purnomo said extending those sales would be a topic of the visit. (*)