Kuwaiti expert calls for greater investment in energy resources

KUWAIT CITY - Chief Executive Officer at Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) Nizar Al-Adsani Tuesday called for developing and investing in all energy resources to meet future demand, however he cautioned greater consumption must be coupled with cutting emissions.

Al-Adsani’s statement came during a ceremony marking issuance of the 2018 oil forecast report, released by the International Energy Agency (IEA), hosted by Kuwait. The IEA and OPEC are working together for a stable energy world, he has said, affirming that the global energy scene has become much more coherent, where the producers and consumers have become partners, rather than foes.

The IEA was established in 1974 to aid consuming nations to act as “a collective coalition, but today, it turned into an active partner seeking better understanding of the markets,” Al-Adsani said. Meanwhile, Khaled Mahdi, the secretary general of the secretariat general of the supreme planning council, said the state development strategy is primarily designed for serving projects in the oil sector.

In turn, the KPC strategy till 2040 focuses on diverse and manufactured products. Kuwait’s oil sector is witnessing execution of a number of strategic projects, namely the environmentally friendly fuel, he said, affirming the serious approach toward producing natural gas, at the national level.

For his part, Usama Al-Sabbagh, the executive manager at the center of energy research at Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, expressed his belief that the demand for oil would not grow, amid abundant supplies of competitive materials namely shale oil. Another eminent attendant, Dr Tareq Al-Sheikh, the resident coordinator of the UN bureau, said the UN is diligently seeking to ensure low costs for energy by 2030, in addition to increasing renewable energy and efficiency of energy harnessing. The Arab region is rich not only in oil and natural gas but also in solar energy, however many of the Arab countries have been moving at turtle’s speed on the path of developing renewable energy.