00:00Smoke rises in countries across the Middle East as what started as a conflict between
00:05the U.S. and Israel against Iran quickly escalates.
00:09The war has disrupted global oil and gas supplies, with facilities across the region limiting
00:14or suspending operations, putting pressure on countries' energy needs.
00:19Taiwan is among those feeling the heat.
00:22Qatar, which supplies 30 percent of Taiwan's liquefied natural gas, has outright halted
00:27production.
00:28Taipei is now scrambling to secure its energy supply.
00:32The cabinet is weighing options, looking for alternatives to find the fuel it needs to
00:36power the country.
00:38It's not a problem for the next month.
00:39So we should say that the next month we have started to launch, and there are some
00:44changes.
00:45If, we don't want to say that this is going to be on the next month, but if it's going
00:51to be on the next month, we still have some changes.
00:54The economy minister will host daily meetings to monitor the global situation and assess
00:59the country's energy policy.
01:01In the short term, Taiwan will have to rely on reserves to help make up any shortfalls in
01:05supply.
01:06But this stop in global production has brought that backup supply under scrutiny.
01:20Analysts say, in the meantime, Taiwan can look to Australia or its neighbors to purchase
01:25more fuel.
01:40Efforts already appear to be underway.
01:43The Financial Times reports that Taiwan is reaching out to Japan and South Korea to coordinate
01:49on a long-term mutual assistance deal on LNG.
01:52But the Middle East supplies fossil fuels to the entire world, not just Taiwan.
01:58By some estimates, it accounts for 30 percent of the world's oil and around 15 percent of
02:03natural gas exports.
02:05That means Taiwan is likely not the only one looking to plug the gap.
02:09As it scrambles to find new oil and gas sources, it could face stiff competition from other
02:15countries hoping to do the same.
02:17Lee Sinchen and Leslie Liao for Taiwan Plus.
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