Today's Edition
HE Haitham Al Ghais
COP28 marks both a milestone in negotiations on the future of our planet and a moment of pride for OPEC, as it takes place in our Member Country, the UAE.
The UAE is a climate leader, with expertise in diverse forms of energy, and a tireless champion of international cooperation, making it ideally suited for the COP Presidency. OPEC will fully support the UAE in making this event a resounding success.
Recently, there has been much attention on oil’s role in energy transitions and whether the industry should have a seat at the negotiating table. Unfortunately, a misguided and risky narrative is appearing, with some myths being perpetuated that do not bear up with the facts.
One such myth is that the oil and renewables industries are competitors locked in a zero-sum game. OPEC disagrees with this narrative. The reasons are simple. Many of the materials used in the construction of wind turbines, solar panels, and lithium-ion batteries are derived from crude oil.
These facts demonstrate a clear reality: we will continue to need oil and petroleum products whilst developing renewables. Despite this, there have been calls to stop investing in oil and invest exclusively in renewables. This presents a conundrum: how can you call for investment in wind energy while saying investments in the materials essential for building wind turbines should end? Looking forward, oil industry investments need to increase.
Demographic and economic changes over the next few decades will only drive demand for crude oil and the products derived from it. According to OPEC’s World Oil Outlook, the global population is expected to expand by around 1.5 billion people by 2045 and the global economy is set to almost double in size.
This leads to energy demand expanding by 23%, with global oil demand set to increase by more than 16 million barrels per day by 2045. Meeting this growth, ensuring energy security and affordable access, and lowering global emissions require all energies, and unprecedented investment.
Investment requirements for the oil sector alone are estimated at a cumulative $14 trillion by 2045. It is vital these are made. OPEC Member Countries recognise the importance of continuing to invest in the oil industry whilst developing their renewables industries, as well as investing in hydrogen projects, carbon capture utilisation and storage and direct air capture facilities, and the circular carbon economy.
The OPEC Pavilion at COP28, the first ever for OPEC at a COP meeting, will showcase many of these initiatives and actions. At OPEC, we believe that energy transitions need to involve “all-peoples, all-fuels and all-technologies”.
The oil industry is part of the solution; not the problem. The UAE has adopted the same holistic, practical and inclusionary approach in the build-up to the COP28. It is an approach that OPEC wholeheartedly endorses, as together, we work to meet the energy needs of the future whilst reducing all emissions.
The writer is the Secretary-General of OPEC
