A clear roadmap with specific goals is needed to achieve a just and effective energy transition, according to Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs and Chairman and CEO of QatarEnergy.
Speaking at the 12th LNG Producers and Consumers Conference in Tokyo, Japan, Al-Kaabi said the world should consider the need for a just and effective transition with a realistic and stable path and that this transition must prioritize the needs of the poorest countries.
“This highlights the need for a realistic and determined energy transition, starting with a solid integration of natural gas in the energy mix of today and tomorrow. We strongly believe that gas will be needed as a safer and more reliable baseload in the energy mix of most nations for decades well beyond 2050,” Al-Kaabi said.
In addition, Al-Kaabi said the lack of investment in the upstream oil and gas sector remains an unresolved and unchallenged issue, leading to a lack of clarity as well as volatility and uncertainty in supply.
“This lack of investment will likely lead to further instability in all regions of the world,” he said. In this context, Al-Kaabi said: “Qatar is providing the world with the cleanest source of hydrocarbon energy available that has met economic and environmental aspirations for a better future. By 2029, about 40 percent of all new global LNG supplies will be provided by QatarEnergy projects. These projects will achieve significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions through carbon capture and sequestration, as well as the use of solar power. In total, we aim to reduce total carbon intensity by around 30 percent compared to previous generation designs.”
In a separate conference call earlier this month that the demonetisation of oil and gas has led to a significant decline in investment in the sector, Al-Kaabi said: “On average, there was a 25 per cent reduction in investment over the last ten years against a normal investment cycle that we would have expected. Today, the only reason we don’t see this hugely impacting the market is a warm winter globally in 2022-2023 and storage is full in Europe. But that storage is not going to be easily replenished and investment is not yet coming in as we think it should.”
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