The Group of Seven countries’ climate ministers have, for the time being, recanted earlier statements that stressed rising future demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG), adding instead that there may be “considerable uncertainty” about overconsumption.
As a result of the energy consequences from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a prior draft declaration for this week’s conference of G7 climate change and energy ministers called for “necessary upstream investments in LNG and natural gas” and predicted that “demand for LNG will continue to grow.”
However, the phrasing was altered as discussions on the statement picked back up on Tuesday, ahead of the ministerial conference scheduled for April 15–16 in Sapporo, Japan.
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The document dated April 5 said, “We recognize that, based on the IEA’s (International Energy Agency) analyses, there would be considerable uncertainty for future demand of natural gas and LNG and consequently there are risks of supply and demand gap to be addressed.”
The original language on LNG and gas investments was also changed in the draft to state that they would be required to “bridge the gap in a manner consistent with our climate objectives and commitments.”
It added a line saying, “Furthermore we will accelerate the clean energy transition through energy savings and gas demand reductions in the process of decarbonization.”
Story was adapted from Reuters
