Minister Praises China Gas Deal

The Age

Thursday August 21, 2008

Michelle Grattan

AUSTRALIA'S liquefied natural gas deal with China will reduce China's emissions by 7 million tonnes a year, Resources Minister Martin Ferguson will tell a business audience in Beijing tonight.

Mr Ferguson says this reduction alone is more than the total annual emissions - 6million tonnes - produced by the North-West Shelf project off Western Australia.

In an advance copy of his speech, Mr Ferguson says the two countries' co-operation on low-emission coal technology acknowledges they face similar challenges from their reliance on coal-fired power generation.

He says the relationship will be further enhanced at the coming Australia-China ministerial dialogue on climate change in Canberra this year.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has flagged that a major focus of the discussions will be on strengthening bilateral co-operation on low-emission coal technology.

"I hope that Australia's increasingly important role as a supplier of clean energy resources such as LNG, uranium and renewable technologies will also be part of our ongoing discussions," Mr Ferguson says.

His remarks about liquefied natural gas are regarded as underlining the importance the Australian Government attaches to the industry, which has been trying to get a better deal in emissions trading arrangements than envisaged in the recent green paper.

Mr Ferguson says LNG trade with China is set to grow in the next decade, following announcements this year of deals with PetroChina by Woodside Energy and Shell.

He also homes in on the potential of China for Australia's tourism industry.

He will tell his Beijing audience that it may come as a surprise to many that China is Australia's fifth-largest tourism market in terms of visitor arrivals, and fourth in terms of economic value.

"The Chinese market is incredibly important for the Australian economy," he says.

"In 2007, the Chinese visitors contributed almost 9% of Australia's total inbound economic value, spending approximately $2 billion. This was an increase of 16% on 2006."

He says strong growth is expected for the next decade, with an average annual growth rate of 12%.

© 2008 The Age

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