Oman and Egypt jointly contest for gas union presidency

Muscat: Oman and Egypt are jointly contesting for the presidency of International Gas Union (IGU) for a three-year term starting from 2021.
The International Gas Union, a global body that represents all natural gas producing and consuming countries, has membership strength of 91 countries representing 97 per cent of production. Other countries that are contesting for the prestigious position are China and Canada, according to officials who attended an executive committee workshop here last week.
Addressing the executive committee meeting, Salim Al Aufi, undersecretary at the Ministry of Oil and Gas, said that Oman produced more than 100 million cubic meters of natural gas per day in 2016, which shows a 3.5 per cent growth over the previous year.
By the end of this year, the undersecretary said, 500 million cubic feet will be added to the production (from Khazzan field) and another 500 million cubic feet will be added in 2018. “So, we are expanding our gas market.”
Al Aufi said that the focus for developing natural gas is taking prominence among energy producers in the country. “We are changing the focus. It is more of a gas driven nation.”
Of the total energy production of the majority state-owned Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), half of the output is oil and condensates and half is natural gas.
Also, several blocks that are under tendering process are natural gas blocks, Al Aufi said.Two of the four blocks that are under tendering process have natural gas.
The Sultanate is facing both internal and external challenges in developing the natural gas sector. The internal challenge is to continuously meet the increasing domestic demand, mainly from power producers and gas-based industries.“Unlike oil, gas needs some commitment,” he added. Since these commitments are for 15 to 25 years, the government has to ensure that natural gas is available for such a long period before making any commitment with buyers.
There has been a surge in demand for natural gas from power producers. “We have decided to cap gas allocation to power producers.” These power companies have to look for other alternatives and make the plants more efficient.
On the international front, Al Aufi said, the country faces challenges due to falling prices.