Indian Ocean-S China Sea pipeline needed - OPEC

15 November 2007 13:36  [Source: ICIS news]

RIYADH (ICIS news)--An oil pipeline connecting the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea is needed to ease demands on the Malacca strait, said a former OPEC secretary-general at its third summit on Thursday.

About 12m bbls/day of crude passes through the Malacca Strait bound for Asia, and that amount is growing, especially for northeastern Asia. The strait is situated between Sumatra in Indonesia and West Malaysia. 

A crash or collision in the strait would cause a slowdown of that traffic as well as a pollution problem, said Dr Subroto, former secretary-general of OPEC from 1988-1994) and formerly Indonesia's oil minister. 

If the strategically and economically important Malacca Strait was blocked, it would force ships to travel an extra 994 miles from the Gulf. The strait is only 1.5 miles wide at its narrowest point, but more than 50,000 vessels a year use it.

An overland pipeline connecting the Indian Ocean, where oil from Middle East producers can be easily transported by tanker, to the South China Sea would increase the safety and sustainability for eastern Asia consumers, said Subroto.

By: Ivan Lerner
+1 713 525 2653

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