The so-called ‘energy transition’ away from fossil fuels is sheer folly which risks causing real economic damage — not just in the rich west, but especially in the developing third world, say energy executives.Speaking at the CERAWeek conference in Houston, the heads of the world’s largest oil producers warned one-by-one that phasing out oil and gas — even coal — too quickly would trigger “a crisis we will never forget,” said Jean Paul Prates, the chief executive of Brazilian state oil producer Petrobas.Added Amin Nasser, the head of world’s largest oil company Saudi Aramco: “We should abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas and instead invest in them adequately.”.“In fact, in the real world, the current transition strategy is visibly failing on most fronts,” he added. “And, despite our starring role in global prosperity, our industry is painted as transition’s arch-enemy.”As he did at the World Petroleum Congress in Calgary last September, Nasser dismissed projections by the International Energy Agency (IEA) that global demand for oil and gas will peak by 2030 due to population growth — especially in Africa — and higher demand in countries such as India.According to the IEA, which has called the fossil-fuel industry “a marginal force at best” in investing in clean energy, oil and gas consumption would have to fall more than 75% by 2050 if the world is to keep to the Paris Accord goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C beyond pre-industrial times..Outside the convention hall activists protested by staging a mock funeral march after complaining they had been purposely banned from attending the gathering..But rising energy costs mean people will require “the importance of oil and gas security” rather than shift to renewables, he added.Outside the convention hall activists protested by staging a mock funeral march after complaining they had been purposely banned from attending the gathering.Inside, the CEOs of Shell and ExxonMobil reiterated plans scale back investments in renewable energy and instead focus on technologies to reduce and ultimately capture CO2.Shell’s Wael Sawan blamed government bureaucrats in the EU for slowing or even blocking development. ExxonMobil boss Darren Woods warned that clean fuel standards haven’t been resolved; Woodside Energy CEO Meg O’Neill said those could take as many as 40 years to develop.But Joe Biden’s Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm pushed back at those industry views.“That is one opinion,” she said of Nasser’s prediction of continuing long-term demand for fossil fuels. “There have been other studies that suggest the opposite that oil and gas demand and fossil demand will peak by 2030.”She called the transition to clean fuels “an undeniable, inevitable and necessary realignment of the world’s energy system.”
The so-called ‘energy transition’ away from fossil fuels is sheer folly which risks causing real economic damage — not just in the rich west, but especially in the developing third world, say energy executives.Speaking at the CERAWeek conference in Houston, the heads of the world’s largest oil producers warned one-by-one that phasing out oil and gas — even coal — too quickly would trigger “a crisis we will never forget,” said Jean Paul Prates, the chief executive of Brazilian state oil producer Petrobas.Added Amin Nasser, the head of world’s largest oil company Saudi Aramco: “We should abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas and instead invest in them adequately.”.“In fact, in the real world, the current transition strategy is visibly failing on most fronts,” he added. “And, despite our starring role in global prosperity, our industry is painted as transition’s arch-enemy.”As he did at the World Petroleum Congress in Calgary last September, Nasser dismissed projections by the International Energy Agency (IEA) that global demand for oil and gas will peak by 2030 due to population growth — especially in Africa — and higher demand in countries such as India.According to the IEA, which has called the fossil-fuel industry “a marginal force at best” in investing in clean energy, oil and gas consumption would have to fall more than 75% by 2050 if the world is to keep to the Paris Accord goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C beyond pre-industrial times..Outside the convention hall activists protested by staging a mock funeral march after complaining they had been purposely banned from attending the gathering..But rising energy costs mean people will require “the importance of oil and gas security” rather than shift to renewables, he added.Outside the convention hall activists protested by staging a mock funeral march after complaining they had been purposely banned from attending the gathering.Inside, the CEOs of Shell and ExxonMobil reiterated plans scale back investments in renewable energy and instead focus on technologies to reduce and ultimately capture CO2.Shell’s Wael Sawan blamed government bureaucrats in the EU for slowing or even blocking development. ExxonMobil boss Darren Woods warned that clean fuel standards haven’t been resolved; Woodside Energy CEO Meg O’Neill said those could take as many as 40 years to develop.But Joe Biden’s Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm pushed back at those industry views.“That is one opinion,” she said of Nasser’s prediction of continuing long-term demand for fossil fuels. “There have been other studies that suggest the opposite that oil and gas demand and fossil demand will peak by 2030.”She called the transition to clean fuels “an undeniable, inevitable and necessary realignment of the world’s energy system.”
