East and Southeast Asian nations said yesterday they will explore the idea of building up oil stockpiles to cushion against supply disruptions from the volatile Middle East.
Japan and South Korea are the only oil importers in the region that now hold onto surplus supplies for use in an emergency, while China and Thailand have plans for their own stockpiles modeled on those kept by rich consuming nations such as the US, officials here said.
But with oil prices bumping up against US$30 per barrel and fears of a US attack on Iraq stirring worries about supply problems, other countries in the ASEAN think they, too, should build up stocks to achieve greater energy security.
Ministers from the 10 ASEAN Nations, Japan, South Korea and China held their first-ever talks on regional oil security on the sidelines of a global conference of the major producing and consuming nations.
The Philippines proposed that a former US military base at Subic Bay, which has large fuel storage facilities, could be used for stockpiling oil. Thailand said its geographic position between the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea would be good for building a strategically placed pipeline.
India's energy minister said separately that the government in New Delhi is thinking of establishing an emergency stockpile, although the idea is still in the preliminary stage.
"We recognize the need for such security," Ram Naik told a news conference.
The discussions among the East Asian nations also were preliminary and will be followed up by more talks next year, said Toshihazu Masuyama, director of energy policy for Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, who briefed reporters on the talks.
"They were not discussing concrete details about how and when and what kind of crude oil," Masuyama said. "At least they have started talking."
ASEAN nations have not gotten to the point of deciding whether they would build one or more regional stockpiles or if each nation should have its own, he said. Japan is urging its developing neighbors to build the stockpiles.
The East Asians grumbled that they typically end up paying a premium of US$1 to US$1.50 per barrel for oil from the Middle East -- and they want to develop more thorough information on the crude market so they can negotiate better deals.
The Indian energy minister said that South Asian nations also get gouged on the price of imported oil, compared with what wealthy European countries pay.
The East Asians also discussed creation of an emergency network to quickly share information in the event of a fuel crisis, as well as making up plans for a coordinated response.
Members of the ASEAN are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
RSS