In its latest report, the Energy Agency criticized the decision to voluntarily cut production adopted by the “OPEC +” alliance, saying that the decision to cut production harms the world economy, because it leads to a shortage of supply and threatens the growth of the world economy. Mondial economy.
This is not the first time the Energy Agency has warned against OPEC’s decisions, as the warning over the decision to cut production came on top of previous direct and indirect criticism.
And in 2021, the International Energy Agency called for a complete halt to investment in new oil and gas projects, in a bid to meet global climate goals.
For his part, OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al-Ghais announced that the Energy Agency’s statements are hurting oil markets, stressing that the organization and its allies do not target prices at all. , but rather act according to the fundamentals of the oil markets.
The OPEC Secretary General’s remarks stemmed from the world’s continued need for fossil fuel sources, particularly oil and gas, as they together account for about 55% of total global energy consumption.
Although the pace of clean energy adoption is accelerating around the world, projections indicate that by 2030, oil and gas will account for about 52% of global energy consumption, according to S&P Global.
The world’s reluctance to invest in the oil sector can lead to a major shortage of supply, which will inevitably lead to a significant increase in oil prices.
According to OPEC, the oil sector needs investments worth 12 trillion dollars until 2045.
Many believe that it is impossible to find an energy mix without oil and gas, and that the best solution is to reduce emissions from the sector through modern technologies, such as carbon capture and storage.
Writer specializing in the oil industry, Abdulaziz Al-Moqbel, said in an interview with the program “Energy World”, that the war of declarations between the Energy Agency and OPEC is a unprecedented event, but the statements are not intended to provoke one party to another, but rather an opportunity to clarify the responsibilities of each.
The statements, according to Al-Moqbel, prompted OPEC to clarify the responsibility of each institution and indicated that OPEC’s responsibilities are to ensure adequate supply for demand in world markets, while the responsibilities of the International Energy Agency are energy security and security of supply for economic cooperation countries.
The oil industry writer explains that over the past five years the International Energy Agency has moved away from its core responsibilities, and has touched on other issues beyond its purview .
Despite this, Abdulaziz Al-Muqbel said the International Energy Agency failed to address many issues that had arisen in previous years and affected energy markets, such as the trade war between China and America, then the disruption of global supply chains, then the Corona outbreak. , and the printing of nearly 8 trillion dollars that weighed on global monetary policies.
“But when OPEC saw the need to refer to the data and expected there to be a drop in demand, necessitating the need to limit production, the Energy Agency blamed OPEC and held it responsible for the price increase,” according to Al-Moqbel.
He added that there was no basis for the International Energy Agency to blame OPEC for the rise in world oil prices and the impact on the growth of the world economy.
Al-Moqbel pointed out that the world already needs about 12 trillion dollars of investments in the oil sector and that the statements of the Energy Agency have caused serious damage to the investment environment. of the energy sector, which is suffering mainly due to geological conditions, production and exploration-related conditions, to provide additional oil and gas supplies in the years to come.
Al-Moqbel added that the Energy Agency said in 2008 during the global financial crisis that the world needed production estimated to be three times that of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to meet demand. growing.
He explained that despite the Energy Agency’s statements on investment in the oil sector and the orientation of investment circles towards other energy sources, it has not established standards on how to move and what are the means that guarantee the transition to the change of dependence on traditional energy sources. ?
“We are currently seeing the world revert to using coal to offset the need for energy sources, and approximately 27% of energy sources remain coal, despite its much greater pollution effects, due to excessive optimism about the transition to other energy sources.” According to the following.
The writer specializing in the oil industry believes that there is a problem in examining the data issued and what has been promised by each party, explaining that OPEC has already fulfilled the obligations issued in its reports and declarations , but the promises of the other parties have not been respected, in particular with regard to the energy transition. Economic cooperation countries should review the data published by the Energy Agency,” according to Al-Moqbel.
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