At Gastech 2026, policymakers implore pragmatism over net-zero targets and closer cooperation to ensure affordable LNG supplies
Quick Look
At the Gastech 2026 conference in Bangkok, energy leaders and policymakers called for pragmatic energy policies over strict net-zero targets to address rising LNG costs and supply disruptions caused by the ongoing war involving Iran.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The US and Israel attacked Iran in late February, leading to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. This event disrupted approximately one-fifth of global gas supplies.
Energy ministers and executives met in Bangkok on Monday to discuss the prolonged price increase for liquefied natural gas (LNG) triggered by the Iran war, with Southeast Asia’s growth ambitions and climate goals on the line as the cost of powering economies shifting to artificial intelligence soars.
On the first day of Gastech 2026, one of the world’s largest energy conferences, policymakers implored pragmatism over net-zero targets and closer cooperation to ensure affordable LNG supplies, particularly among Southeast Asian neighbours whose industrial plans remain hooked on gas generation.
The region’s energy security has been brutally exposed since the US and Israel attacked Iran in late February, resulting in the virtual closure of the Strait of Hormuz and what Tengku Mohammad Taufik, CEO of Malaysian state energy giant Petronas, described as a “debacle” that has “curtailed, disrupted or disturbed” a fifth of the world’s gas supplies.
Singapore’s economy is virtually fully powered by natural gas, most of it imported from Malaysia and Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest producing nations.
Open Questions
- How will Southeast Asian nations adapt their energy mix in the short term?
- Will the Strait of Hormuz reopen in the near future?
