The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that if governments honor commitments to their clean energy transition objectives, a substantial decrease of close to 50% in global oil demand by the year 2050 is feasible, the Financial Times reports.
This prediction is accompanied by a warning from the IEA’s executive director, Fatih Birol, who highlights the diminishing security of investments in the oil and gas sectors.
Some contributing factors Birol is pointing to include growing geopolitical tensions and the looming impact of climate change.
This IEA stance comes on the heels of recent high-profile acquisitions in the oil sector initiated by two oil giants, ExxonMobil and Chevron, where both companies’ acquisitions exceeded 100 billion U.S. dollars.
The IEA already firmly opposes further investments in fossil fuels, and foresee a looming peak in demand for not only oil but also natural gas and coal, all expected to occur before 2030.
In this changing landscape, IEA’s opposition to fossil fuels serves to highlight the prominent role renewable energy sources will play in meeting the world’s energy needs in the future.
The IEA’s message underscores the need for governments to adopt ambitious climate policies in the fight against climate change, limiting global warming, and preventing the worst-case scenario of a worsening climate.
The upcoming climate conference (COP28) will shine a light on how committed the world is to meeting the 1.5-degree Celsius target, a critical threshold in averting the worst consequences of climate change.
