From the Asahi Shimbun, dateline 2013-05-12:
By SYAHRILAZLI MAHAMMAD/ Executive director, Malaysia Petroleum Resources Corp.
With oil consumption in the Asia-Pacific region increasing more than 30 percent since 2000, Malaysia has been bolstering its role as an energy consumer and regional hub for energy trading. In cooperation with Singapore, with its strong financial and IT sectors, Malaysia–a key exporter of oil and gas to Japan–is striving to become a global center of the energy industry.
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Malaysia is a bridge between the markets of Europe and those of China and the rest of Asia. Until now, Malaysia has developed as an oil and gas producer, but economic growth has pushed domestic demand to the point where supply capacity will probably decline in future, not just in Malaysia, but throughout Southeast Asia.
In fiscal 2011, for example, Malaysia was the largest supplier of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to Japan, but it now has started to import LNG from elsewhere. Malaysia is currently building facilities on the Strait of Malacca for the regasification of imported LNG for distribution across the country.
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Wata - Malaysian Oil and Gas Engineer 