Qatar, Japan's energy white night

What's up with Qatar? Are they positioning to become a major player? Could happen.

Qatar is expected to emerge as a country that holds the key to Japan's future energy security as it becomes the country's biggest supplier of liquefied natural gas (LNG) around 2010.

During his recent visit to Tokyo, the Qatari energy and industry minister said the Persian Gulf state plans nearly to double LNG exports to Japan by 2010. This news has come as a godsend for Japan at a time when Indonesia, its current No 1 supplier of LNG, is considering cutting in half shipments to the country from 2010. At the same time, Japan and Russia remain at odds over the Sakhalin-2 oil-and-gas project in the Russian Far East.

Japan is the world's largest importer of LNG, purchasing 58 million tons from abroad in 2005, of which 25% was from Indonesia. Qatar was Japan's fourth-largest LNG supplier in 2005, after Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia, accounting for about 11% of Japan's total imports. Qatar, which has the world's third-largest proven gas reserves after Russia and Iran, with 25.78 trillion cubic meters, is set to become the world's top exporter of LNG.

Japan is also the world's second-largest crude-oil importer, after the United States. Japan imports almost all of its oil, about 90% of which comes from the Middle East. Qatar is also Japan's fourth-biggest crude-oil supplier, after Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

Cooking in the Far-East and most of Asia is done with LNG. Being a major supplier is a smart move for Qatar.

This announcement comes on the heels of this announcement.

Truth is, actions like this, Castro's sending doctors to help suffering people and Chavez's largesse with oil win the people over, much more than killing them as Bush is prone to do. Didn't such compassion used to be associated with America? Just asking.

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