Asian nations agree to strengthen cooperation for oil supply security

Member-countries of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) have agreed to further strengthen regional cooperation to ensure oil supply security and reliability.

The oil supply situation was the main concern raised by the Asian energy officials during the two-day ACD meeting here in Manila.

The ACD is composed of both oil exporting countries in Asia: Bahrain, Brunei, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Oman and Qatar; and oil importing countries such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Laos, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.

A delegation from Saudi Arabia also attended the two-day meeting as observers.

Conceptualized two years ago by the Thai government, the ACD is aimed at promoting and improving relationships among Asian countries in all areas of cooperation to help reduce poverty and improve the quality of life for the Asian people.

The group said that energy security is of paramount importance to "realize economic goals and counter threats of disruptions, terrorism and other global disorders."

Philippine Energy Undersecretary J.V. Emmanuel de Dios, chairman of the ACD working group, said the member-countries acknowledged the urgent need to promote programs on energy security as they jointly expressed serious concerns on the escalating world oil prices that recently breached historic levels.

The member-countries pointed out that the present level of prices, if not arrested, could drastically impede the positive growth of world economies.

Thailand, acting as ACD coordinator, noted that Asia’s demand for energy is expected to outpace its energy production by a wide margin in the coming years.

De Dios said that the member-countries have vowed to further strengthen regional cooperation in the areas of aggressive energy efficiency and conservation measures, petroleum contingency schemes, and regular dialogues to develop linkages.

The energy official also said ACD members agreed to study the possibility of joint stock-piling as one of the measures in ensuring the reliable supply of oil.

He said the member-countries showed keen interest in the development and widespread use of compressed natural gas (CNG) as a transport fuel in their respective countries. The Philippine government has been pushing for the accelerated use of CNG and other environment-friendly alternative fuels in public transportation to lessen dependence on imported oil.

"For the Philippines, this means that we will be able to secure information on CNG engines, buses and strategies used by other countries. This would enable local bus and jeepney operators who have earlier expressed keen interest to shift to CNG," De Dios said.