the potential new cold war & aust gas exports.

The unfortunate events in the Ukraine are making EU countries face some questions that they would prefer not to deal with, such as:

* EU member nations rely heavily on gas for power generation.
* More than 25% of the EU gas supplies come from Russia, supplied through gas pipes running through the Ukraine.
* 40% of natural gas used by Germany is supplied by Russia, through gas pipelines running through the Ukraine.

Like it or not, EU member countries need Russian gas to run their own countries and keep their residents happy and the economies running, hence why a lot of European politicans are not protesting in their loudest voices against Russia's recent actions.

Now, America has experienced its "shale gas revolution" and for the first time, is looking at being a exporter rather than importer of gas. They were orignally looking at exporting gas to Asia, due to the higher prices that they could acheive.

BUT, now America's attention for gas exports is moving to Europe, as they try and convience EU leaders that the do not need to be as dependent on Russia for their energy needs. This would have massive political ramifications in Europe and greatly assist in reducing Russia's "energy strangle hold" over Europe.

As a result, the Asian market will still have an appetite for gas, with Australia having the oppertunity to cement its position as the main supplier. The infastructure is being built / in place, all we need now are companies with decent reserves of gas to actually start producing / supplying gas.....hmmm...... AJQ perhaps?

Some interesting links:

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303795904579429523736013630

http://www.smh.com.au/business/risc-advisory-australian-liquefied-natural-gas-exports-may-be-cheaper-for-asia-than-us-20140112-30oqy.html

http://www.allgov.com/news/top-stories/is-washington-using-the-ukraine-crisis-to-push-natural-gas-exports-to-asia-140310?news=852645