Global gas demand is set to rebound quickly post-pandemic, as growth is underpinned by favorable economics, wider access to the fuel and lower emissions ambitions, a report said on Thursday.
According to the Global Gas Report 2020, published by the International Gas Union (IGU), research company BloombergNEF (BNEF) and Italy’s gas infrastructure company Snam, growth could resume as soon as 2021.
The timing forecast, however, is dependent on the persistence and longevity of the Covid-19 pandemic, Kallanish Energy learns.
The use of natural gas is becoming more cost-competitive and more widespread, particularly thanks to liquefied natural gas (LNG). In fact, LNG offers great growth prospects, the report said, highlighting infrastructure expansion in both China and India.
The pandemic is driving global gas demand to decline 4% this year, compared to an increase of over 2% in 2019. LNG imports are set to fall 4.2% y-o-y, compared to a 13% growth last year.
The Covid-19 outbreak has disrupted the global energy sector, but has also “reminded the world about the value of clean air and healthy environment for wellbeing, providing a unique opportunity to rebuild better,” said IGU President Joe Kang.
“Gas is an abundant, clean, accessible and flexible substitute to more polluting energy sources, and supporting greater fuel switching from coal and oil to gas in the immediate term, while ensuring infrastructure is ready to accommodate progressively greater scale of clean gas technologies in the coming decade, is the way to secure a sustainable and prosperous future,” he added.
The cleaner fossil fuel can have a relevant role to play in the energy transition and the scaling up of the hydrogen market.
“A smart way to scale up hydrogen production is blending it with natural gas in existing gas pipelines, something Snam has been testing for two years,” said Snam CEO Marco Alverà.
The Italy-based firm envisions a future where clean hydrogen produced in Southern Italy or North Africa can be transported through its pipelines to serve Central and Northern European needs. The use of existing infrastructure is expected to play a central role in supporting the penetration of hydrogen in the energy mix, he noted.
This post appeared first on Kallanish Energy News.
