The role of oil as a vital source of energy to the world is expected to continue for the long term despite the growth of alternatives, said Amin H. Nasser, President and CEO of Saudi Aramco at the World Petroleum Congress in Istanbul on July 10, 2017.
Noting historic trends, the Saudi Aramco CEO predicted in the next 25 years a doubling of the world economy, plus an additional 2 billion energy consumers, resulting in a lengthy energy transition that alternative sources such as renewables cannot adequately support.
«About $1 trillion in investments has been lost in the current downturn, concurrent to growing oil demand and the natural decline of developed fields. Conservative estimates suggest we need about 20 million [additional] barrels per day over the next 5 years to counter these effects.»
The volume of conventional oil discovered around the world halved over the past 4 years, according to Nasser, leading to an investment shortfall and the start of a cycle that may inhibit a future energy transition.
The Saudi Aramco boss identified 3 key areas that can build resilience for the transition.
Namely, he underlined available supplies, cost structure and portfolio integration, and emissions reduction.
Addressing supplies, he said: «Saudi Aramco plans to invest more than $300 billion over the coming decade to reinforce our preeminent position in oil, maintain our spare oil production capacity and pursue a large exploration and production program centered on conventional and unconventional gas resources.»
