By Adaobi Rhema Oguejiofor
Saudi Aramco and ExxonMobil, despite throwing their weight behind the global transition to cleaner forms of energy, have stated that oil would continue to play a major role in the world for many years to come.
The Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of both organizations supported the capturing and storing of carbon as a climate solution viewed skeptically by environmentalists as one of the best ways to significantly reduce emissions from burning fossil fuels, stating that cutting oil usage too quickly would be dangerous, given the growing global demand for energy.
The CEO of ExxonMobil, Darren Woods, during a panel discussion at the World Petroleum Congress (WPC) in Calgary, Canada, said that “there seems to be wishful thinking that we are going to flip a switch and we will go from where we are at today to where it will be tomorrow. No matter where demand gets to, if we do not maintain some level of investment in the industry, you end up running short of supply, which leads to high prices.”
The comments came as the petroleum industry hits back against its critics and fights for control over the narrative surrounding the global energy system’s transformation to limit the impact of climate change. The sector is a natural attraction for criticism from clean energy advocates, environmental activists, and pro-green politicians.
Woods and Saudi Aramco CEO, Amin Nasser, were optimistic about the prospects for oil demand and disdainful of other forecasts for how quickly the world will detach itself off of crude.
Nasser said that he expects record usage of about 103 million to 104 million barrels per day in the second half of 2023, with demand climbing to 110 million by 2030, adding that it puts the burden on the industry to continue developing new sources of production, rather than cut back output as environmentalists want.
In his own words, “we need to invest otherwise in the mid to long term, we will have another crisis and we will go backward in terms of using more and more coal and other cheap products available today. And all these decarbonization efforts will go down the drain.”
The Minister of Energy for Saudi Arabia, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, expressed that the kingdom wants to support the transition but politicians must be honest about the challenges ahead, and the risks if the shift is not managed well.
Prince Abdulaziz further added that he would like a session at the next World Petroleum Congress, scheduled to be held in Riyadh in 2026, that would discuss how Saudi Arabia managed to transition without creating “havoc” in its economy.