Territory pushing trade with Asia
By ERWIN CHLANDA
A Territory government delegation to Taiwan, pitching AI-ready data centres, is seeking to build on current annual trade worth $9bn with three other Asian countries.
The biggest customer is Japan, spending $5.1bn on liquefied natural gas. As has been in the headlines recently, the country puts the LPG on the international market, making massive profits.
Japan itself produces a negligible amount of natural gas. 27% of what it on-sells comes from Australia, 18% from Malaysia, Qatar (15%), Russia (9%) and Indonesia (8%).
The question has been asked why the NT isn’t supplying the international market directly, hugely boosting its earnings.
The Republic of Korea also buys natural gas from the NT, as well as crude petroleum ($2.9bn).
China buys metalliferous ores and gas for $2.1bn.
A spokesperson for Trade Minister Robyn Cahill says the Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with South Korea’s Samsung C&T.
It is a leading global engineering, procurement and construction company responsible for delivering major projects including the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (at right) and Petronas Twin Towers (at top).
“The MoU establishes a framework for collaboration across energy transition, industrial development, digital infrastructure, maritime logistics and defence-supporting capabilities and builds on an existing relationship with the Territory dating back to 2023,” says the spokeperson.
Minister Cahill is now pitching to Taiwan investors “significant reserves of lithium, rare earths, graphite, copper and cobalt essential for electric vehicles, battery technology, and advanced manufacturing.
“The Beetaloo sub-basin represents one of Australia’s most significant long-life domestic gas resources, offering opportunities across exploration, development, and long-term LNG offtake arrangements.
“The Territory’s proximity to Asia and access to international subsea cable routes further strengthen its attractiveness for AI-ready data centres.”