The Economic Times | World needs $12 trillion investment in Oil Exploration & Production by 2045: OPEC Secy General

Feb 06,2023

New Delhi: The Secretary General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Haitham Al Ghais, has said the global Oil Exploration & Production (E&P) sector requires about 12 trillion-dollar investment by 2045.

"At OPEC, we strongly believe that this investment is required to ensure energy security for all," he said, speaking at the session "Prices & Supply volatility addressing global energy security need" as part of the India Energy Week event in Bengaluru, India.
Al Ghais also said the sector has suffered "chronic under-investment" in the last few years and its production has fallen by about 6 percent, forgetting about growth to meet increasing global demand.

He said the OPEC is in favour of transition and cleaner energy switching but said the issue here is not about the source but it is about emission. “We all need to work together to reduce the emission so that there is energy security for all,” he said.
Al Ghais also said that 2022 has been a turbulent year for all of us in all respects as the fear of recession globally and lockdown in China and elsewhere reduced the oil demand by about 30 percent.
"However, with the markets now opening, we at OPEC Plus are taking a cautious approach as we are dealing with the unknown (Covid virus)," he said.
The event was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who called for unhindered Oil & Gas supplies in order to meet the growing aspirations of crores of people who now form the middle class in India.
"The Oil & Gas sector will continue to play an important role in meeting India’s growing energy demand, even as the country has charted out a roadmap towards creating clean energy generation infrastructure.
Speaking at the same event, Oil minister Hardeep Singh Puri said when we talk about energy security, essentially from the perspective of countries that are not oil producers and are heavily dependent on imports, it means availability, predictability, stability and affordability of oil and gas.