In the first instalment of what will become an ongoing series, Asia Natural Gas and Energy Association CEO Paul Everingham answers some key questions about the Asian energy landscape, outlines current challenges and opportunities in the energy transition and wraps up what have been a fast-paced first six months of 2023.
You started as ANGEA’s inaugural CEO in late August 2022, what are your reflections on the first 10 months in the job?
It’s been very busy and also incredibly rewarding. You go into a role like this with a fairly decent idea about what you will be doing and the directions the organisation might take. But it’s not until you are actually doing it that you properly start to understand all the moving parts. And, of course, your early vision of an organisation’s direction always evolves.
I’ve found it really exciting to learn more about a topic that fascinates me and which first attracted me to the role – that being the energy landscape of Asia. It’s a complex space which is going to be absolutely critical to global net zero aspirations, and I think ANGEA and our member companies have a very important role to play within that.
What have you enjoyed the most about the role so far?
There are many things I enjoy about this job but two really stand out for me. One is getting to know the people who are on the ground helping make energy systems work right across Asia – whether they are in government, part of industry or in other key stakeholder positions. These people have been very welcoming of both myself and ANGEA and we’re very grateful for that. I think it’s often pretty thankless work juggling the complexities of energy supply, demand and security, and I’m inspired by how invested these people are in that work.
The other thing I really enjoy is the calibre of people I get to interact with. In the course of this job, I meet and deal with people from an amazingly wide range of backgrounds and they are some of the smartest people you could hope to encounter. For someone like me, who is naturally curious, being able to ask those people questions and tap into their experience, insights and intellect is a big thrill.
What’s been the biggest thing or things that you have had to get your head around?
I think the biggest one – and it’s something I hope more people outside the region will come to understand – is that no two countries are the same and their energy transition journeys will likewise be unique. I was somewhat prepared for that coming in but since taking on the role I’ve definitely come to appreciate it a lot more. Within Asia we’ve got highly developed countries with basically no domestic energy resources and developing countries that are resource-rich but not always able to make use of it. There are countries with strong gas reserves but which are currently dependent on coal and other nations that want to import more gas but can’t necessarily afford it, particularly since Europe re-entered the global market at scale a couple of years ago. In amongst all that, basically every country is looking for ways to move to a lower carbon energy profile while maintaining economic growth. Nothing about this whole equation is simple and the uniqueness of each country certainly adds to the complexities.
How do you view the progress being made with energy transition in Asia?
Energy transition is an incremental and ongoing process that will take place over decades – it’s not the kind of thing where we’ll suddenly look up and there has been progress overnight. But I think there are green shoots everywhere around Asia and, most importantly, governments, industries and major companies are really committed to credible energy transition. Whether it’s developed economies like Japan, Singapore or Korea, developing economies like Vietnam and Indonesia (both of which are now involved in Just Energy Transition Partnerships), or a nation such as Thailand that has a real opportunity to be a leader in low carbon energy solutions – countries in Asia are actively taking steps to balance future growth with emissions reductions. Countries such as India and the Philippines, which face some pretty significant challenges in their energy transitions, are also making encouraging announcements about policy direction. Again, progress is something that will be more accurately measured in 2030 and then perhaps another 10 years after that, but current signs are positive right across Asia.
What is the key thing you would like developed western economies to understand about Asia’s energy landscape?
I’d like them to know that they have an extremely significant role to play in Asia’s energy transition. The world can’t get to net zero without energy transition in Asia. At the same time, Asia can’t change its energy mix for the better without the world’s help. And that assistance has to be practical and pragmatic. It’s not just a matter of investing in renewable energy projects in developing countries and hoping for the best. ANGEA and our member companies are supportive of renewables and clearly they are a big part of the net zero equation. But for a variety of reasons – including intermittency issues, limitations in battery technology and grid complications – renewables need to be partnered with a reliable source of baseline power. Right now, for a lot of Asian nations, that partner is coal. It’s the strong belief of ANGEA and our members that natural gas, which produces 50 per cent less emissions in power generation than coal, is a better partner and one that can help underpin genuine energy transition in developing economies. However, to make that happen, gas-producing countries around the world will need to make decisions that allow for more gas to be produced and more LNG to be exported at a price developing economies can afford. And those decisions need to be made today, not in five years’ time. Major gas projects and associated export and import infrastructure take years to develop and unless they get the go-ahead now, there simply won’t be enough gas produced to meet Asia’s needs in 2030 and beyond.
The other thing I hope people might consider is the reality of Asia’s energy demands. Right now, for some countries, it’s a matter of just being able to keep the lights on the majority of the time for most of the population. Over the next 25-30 years, as that energy demand rapidly rises, it’s going to fuel economic growth that will bring tens of millions of people in Asia out of poverty and lift standards of life around the region. I’m fortunate to have grown up and lived all of my life being able to flick a switch and know the lights will come on. You become conditioned to that being the norm. But seemingly basic things that get taken for granted in developed economies aren’t guaranteed in some parts of Asia. Developed economies in the western world largely got to where they are on the back of industrial revolutions fuelled by coal. There’s a fair degree of hypocrisy in those countries turning around now and saying to Asia “well you can’t use coal.” On the flip side, however, there is a tremendous opportunity for the west to work with developing nations in Asia on alternatives, like switching out coal for gas, growing renewables capacity, developing potential fuels of the future like hydrogen and ammonia, and investing in carbon capture, utilisation and storage technology. That’s how pragmatic and effective energy transition can happen.
Why was the Rystad Study so important for ANGEA and, more broadly, Asian energy transition?
I think the most important thing about the Rystad Study is the sheer amount of detail that has gone into it. The full report runs to more than 250 pages and it’s a testament to the professionalism and expertise of the team at Rystad Energy. They didn’t just look at one or two select energy options for the study countries of Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, they looked at a full spectrum – piped natural gas, LNG, renewables, nuclear, coal and oil. And they assessed each of them rigorously against the variables of affordability, accessibility and acceptability, while also putting everything into a global context. I’d encourage anyone with an interest in energy to visit our website and have a look at the presentation Rystad have put together. It really is first class.
From the perspective of ANGEA – and also the American Petroleum Institute, who co-commissioned the study – it gives us something tangible that we can take to governments around the world and say “this is a practical model for credible energy transition in Asia.” It’s not just ANGEA or the API saying that natural gas can effectively underpin energy transition, there’s a huge volume of research from a world-renowned independent company that demonstrates why that is the case. And although the study focusses on three key countries, the recommendations from it apply quite broadly across Asia.
Carbon capture, utilisation and storage [CCUS] is a key part of ANGEA’s work – how do you view progress on that technology?
I’m really excited about the future of CCUS. As the International Energy Agency has made clear, very significant worldwide investment in CCUS is going to be required for the world to achieve net zero. Again, like energy transition itself, it’s not a case of us waking up one morning and there’s suddenly CCS facilities having popped up everywhere. There’s a lot of work required to make it happen – and not just in technical research and development. Policy settings need to be configured so that CO2 can not only be stored but also transported, including across international borders.
Progress on CCUS for Asia over the past 10 months has been really encouraging. Every government we’ve spoken to in the region is open to this technology and appreciates its potential. In March I was in Bangkok for the Thailand Energy Transition Executive Forum and then in Houston for CERAWeek – and CCUS was the single biggest thing that people wanted to talk about at both events. Since then we’ve had the Indonesian Government releasing draft CCUS regulations and, more recently, the Government of Japan identifying seven sites at which it would seek to commercialise CCUS. We also had a really productive roundtable discussion on the topic among key stakeholders at the Future Energy Asia conference in May. The scope of CCUS is really only limited by our imaginations. Geologically, there are large parts of Asia that may be suitable for storage and we have a near neighbour in Australia that could be a willing recipient of CO2, and which already is home to the world‘s largest operational CCS system. One thing that I think has perhaps been underplayed to date is the commercial opportunity around CCUS – whole new industries and businesses in Asia will spring up because of it.
What do the next few months hold in store for ANGEA?
They will definitely be busy! We’ve recently had our first on-the-ground engagement in Korea and our first trip to Vietnam is coming up in July. That’s an especially interesting one because of the recent adoption of National Power Development Plan 8 and the big roles forecast within that for natural gas and LNG. I’m also very excited to be going to LNG2023 in Vancouver in July. Over the next decade we could see Canada emerge as a really significant supplier of LNG to Asia and I’m looking forward to engaging with key local stakeholders while I’m there. Gastech in September is in our own backyard in Singapore, where ANGEA has established its offices, so that will be great. We’ll also be in Washington in October for meetings with government and energy officials. The US and it’s ever-growing LNG export industry is a critical energy partner for Asia and we want to make sure stakeholders continue to understand the importance of that relationship.
The other thing I’d throw in here is that the Rystad Study is the first but most certainly not the last piece of research ANGEA will be commissioning. We’ve got some other projects in mind and I’m hopeful of being able to say more about them in the second half of the year.
How has ANGEA changed or evolved over the past 10 months?
I’d like to think we’ve grown in a number of ways. From a physical perspective, we now have a permanent office in Singapore and a number of staff around Asia. Membership-wise, we’ve added several new members and I’m optimistic there are more to come. We’re never going to be a mass-membership organisation but we’re mindful of the value in having broad coverage of the gas and energy supply chains across a range of jurisdictions. One thing I’ve been very consciously attempting to do since I came on board is grow the scope of our communications, including media engagement and digital channels such as this website.
In terms of the policy work we’re undertaking, I think our relationships with key stakeholders have strengthened over the past 10 months – in Asia and beyond. Continuing to invest in and add to those relationships is going to be crucial to ANGEA’s success.
What is your favourite thing about living and working in Asia?
Much like my previous response about my favourite parts of the job, I really enjoy meeting new people, hearing their stories and learning about their culture – and that applies across the board on my travels, not only the people I encounter who work in energy.
Another thing I’d note is that I’ve spent most of the past two decades living in Perth in Western Australia, which is one of the most isolated capital cities in the world. It’s a four-hour flight from Perth to Sydney without even leaving Australia, so it’s a bit of a culture-shock – in a good way – to be based in Singapore and within easy reach of so many different places. In only two hours I can pretty much be in Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City or Jakarta. I’m not used to that type of convenience and it’s quite refreshing!
Paul Everingham was CEO of the Asia Natural Gas and Energy Association (ANGEA) from September 2022 to June 2026. ANGEA works with governments, industries and communities in Asia, providing affordable solutions that promote energy security, economic growth and decarbonisation.
