The Chief Executive of Standard Chartered, Bill Winters, has said that fossil fuel will remain relevant in global energy sector despite protests from Non Governmental Organizations, NGO’s and other interest groups.
Winters position is also reinforced by call from the Secretary-General of the United Nations UN, Antonio Guterres urging for more oil and gas because prices have become unbearable.
Two years ago, the International Energy Agency, IEA, said investment in new oil and gas exploration should be abolished by the end of 2020 because we wouldn’t need more oil and gas going forward.
The IEA, for its part, has turned around on its calls for fewer oil and gas investments. In just a matter of months, the industry body has reversed its message and is now calling on oil producers to churn out more oil and gas.
Meanwhile, demand for oil remains robust despite environmentalist protests, despite denunciatory reports, and despite calls for less investment in oil and gas.
In its March Oil Market Report, the IEA said that 2022 oil demand would rise by 2.1 million barrels a day bpd, from last year. This, for context, is about the same as the combined oil production of Nigeria and Venezuela as of March this year, per the latest Monthly Oil Market Report of OPEC.
Yet oil demand is not static, and this month the International Energy Agency revised down its demand forecast to 1.9 million barrels a day from last year. That is about the same as the combined production of Libya and Algeria. OPEC also revised down its demand forecast, although it still expects stronger demand growth than the IEA, at 3.7 million bpd.
