Energy Leaders Identify Diversification into Greener Energy as Priority for Long-Term Business Growth and Net-Zero Ambitions

Gastech Virtual Summit Strategic Conference Featured The Gas, LNG and Energy Industry's Most Powerful Decision Makers

LONDON, Sept. 12, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The closing remarks of the Gastech Virtual Summit have taken place today. The Summit has put the spotlight on the importance of gas in the growing demand for energy globally and highlighted the resilience of the industry in the face of price volatility, COVID-19 and the changes to the environmental agenda. Gas companies are now energy companies, with the shared mandate to drive a low carbon energy future.

Chan Chun Sing, Minister of Trade & Industry for Singapore, opened the Summit on Monday 7 September, immediately bringing to the fore the theme that has continued throughout this week, the Gas, LNG and Energy industry will evolve and adapt to meet the net zero carbon ambitions by mid-century. During the opening Chan Chun Sing said; "As the LNG hub of the region, our government and gas industry in Singapore have embarked on many initiatives across the value chain. These serve to promote innovation in the sector and the adoption of more environmentally sustainable energy strategies."

Gastech has a successful history of attracting the industry's top CEOs as speakers. The renowned strategic and technical conference programmes featured more than 200 speakers, in 89 conference sessions and presentations. Over 1,500 delegates participated in the global Gas, LNG and Energy industry's premier knowledge exchange platform. Issues impacting the future of the industry; energy security of supply; affordability and sustainability; the prospects for demand and investment recovery; and changes to supply in a post COVID-19 world have remained top of the agenda. 

Honourable Seamus O'Regan, Minister for Natural Resources of Canada addressed the delegates during a Keynote on Monday, leading on the Summit's mandate for the energy transition, stating "just as our goal of net-zero emissions by 2050 needs our oil and gas industry, our oil and gas industry needs net-zero." O'Regan also added, "We must move now on our common mission, a net zero economy by 2050, a global economy that continues to grow, and an energy transition that leaves no one behind." 

Joseph McMonigle, Secretary General of International Energy Forum opened Day 2 of the conference with a Keynote Address, he said, "The pandemic increases the stakes by pushing the demand gap out further over the next decade. This opens a new window of opportunity that enables the gas industry to play a larger role in achieving climate, clean air, and energy access goals."

The conversation on the collective response needed for the energy transition, and the strategies and innovation that will shape the future of the industry continued throughout the Summit. Both Thomas Siebel, Author, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer at C3.ai and Eugene Kaspersky, CEO, Kaspersky delivered Gastech Tech Talks on digital transformation, Internet Of Things and Security and the criticality of technology for the energy future. 

Pratima Rangarajan, CEO of OGCI Climate Investments addressed climate change.  She said, "Energy is at the heartbeat of all this activity, but just decarbonising the energy system does not solve the climate problem. That is why it's imperative for us all, even within the energy industry to take a system view of everything we do and work together on decarbonising our ecosystems."

Hydrogen's potential to play a key role in a clean, secure and affordable energy future was discussed this week, with De La Rey Venter, Executive Vice President, Integrated Gas Ventures of Shell saying; "How important is hydrogen really in the context of our climate aspirations? Bluntly put, it is mission critical." Hydrogen will play an important role in decarbonising the energy industry, this week Gastech Hydrogen Exhibition and Conference was launched, co-located with Gastech, the event will enable those driving the development of Hydrogen and those investing to convene in Singapore next September.  

Driving the Gas, LNG and Energy Industry towards a cleaner energy future, the Summit's speakers included Lorenzo Simonelli, Chairman, President & CEO of Baker Hughes; Maarten Wetselaar, Integrated Gas & New Energies Director and Member of the Executive Committee at Shell; Laurent Vivier, Senior Vice President Gas, Total; Mike Sabel, Co-CEO, Co-Chairman and Founder, Venture Global LNG; Jerome Schmitt, Chairman, Oil & Gas Climate Initiative; Alex Volkov, Vice President, Global LNG Marketing, ExxonMobil; Francis Fannon, Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Energy Resources, United States Department of State; Shawn Tupper, Associate Deputy Minister of Natural Resources, Canada; Hon. Dale Nally, Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity, Government of Alberta; Irtiza Sayyed, President, ExxonMobil LNG Market Development Inc; Prabhat Singh, Chairman & Managing Director, Petronet LNG; Atsunori Takeuchi, Executive Officer, Senior General Manager of LNG Optimization & Trading Department, Tokyo Gas; Faisel Khan, Chief Financial Officer, Sempra LNG; Anatol Feygin, Chief Commercial Officer, Cheniere; Thomas Siebel, Author & Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, C3.ai; De La Rey Venter, Executive Vice President, Integrated Gas Ventures, Shell; Niek den Hollander, Executive Board Member Uniper SE; Keisuke Sadamori, Director, Energy Markets and Security, International Energy Agency; Sanjiv Lamba, Executive Vice President, APAC, Linde; Thorbjoern Fors, Executive Vice President, Industrial Applications, Siemens Energy and Dan Feldman, Partner, Shearman & Sterling.

Nick Ornstien, Vice President Energy for dmg events said: "The Gastech Virtual Summit has delivered advanced insights into the latest commercial strategies and trends dominating the Gas, LNG and Energy industry, providing delegates with fast track information on how best to align business models for the post-pandemic landscape."

The Gastech Virtual Summit 2020 was being held in place of the Gastech exhibition and conference, scheduled to take place in Singapore this week. dmg events and the Gastech Governing Body, in consultation with Enterprise Singapore and the Singapore Tourism Board collectively took the decision to postpone that event, to 13 – 16 September 2021, due to concerns around the global pandemic, accessibility and the wellbeing of speakers, delegates, exhibitors and visitors.

About Gastech

For almost 50 years, Gastech has been at the heart of the Gas, LNG and Energy conversation. As the world starts to emerge from the shadow of COVID-19, the Gastech Virtual Summit will engage with, and address, the key issues and most promising opportunities for the Gas, LNG and Energy industries in the 4th industrial age.

Taking place from 7-11 September 2020, Gastech Virtual Summit will provide leadership and direction as the Gas, LNG and Energy industries seek to strike a balance between business priorities and their licence to operate, in a post COVID-19 world. With an emphasis on technology innovation; supply and demand dynamics; evolving partnerships; people and talent and governance and influence, the Summit will set the agenda for the global Gas, LNG and Energy industries for decades to come.

For more information please visit www.gastechevent.com.

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