Joint Malaysian-Thai gas project delayed - PTT
BANGKOK, April 21 (Reuters) - Natural gas from Block A18 in the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Development Area is expected to supply power plants from late May or early June, nearly two months behind schedule, PTT PTT.BK said Monday.
The natural gas supply, which is supposed to flow at a rate of 400 million cubic feet a day (mmscf/d), has been delayed due partly to stormy weather in southern Thailand, PTT official Chitrapongse Kwangsukstith said.
"The project has been held up a little due to the weather and a slight pipeline system problem," Chitrapongse, Chief Operating Officer for PTT's upstream and gas operations, told reporters.
The gas output will be supplied to the Chana power plant in the southern Thai province of Songkhla at about 100 mmscf/d. The rest will be delivered to plants in Thailand's Rayong industrial zone.
The net oil importing country consumes an average of 3.8 billion cubic feet a day of natural gas, with demand expected to rise by more than 10 percent over the next decade.
Natural gas is a major source of fuel for power generation in Thailand, accounting for about 70 percent of the country's fuel mix.
On Monday, PTT shares were unchanged at 334 baht while the overall Thai index closed down 0.4 percent. (Reporting by Ploy Chitsomboon; Editing by Ed Cropley)
