OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo has warned that the energy sector must “take stock” and perform a “holistic post-mortem” following the COP26 climate conference.
During a panel at ADIPEC in Abu Dhabi, he said that the oil and gas sector was “targeted” during COP26, and that it was “clearly stated that this industry has no place in this concession if the world is to achieve the cut of 1.5 degrees within the time frame.”
Calling it an “alarm bell”, Barkindo noted that despite applauding the efforts that went into the consensus, he felt that “the future of [the oil and gas] industry is at stake.”
The conversation turned to energy poverty, and the 2.6 billion people who live without reliable access to power.
“I’m not going to allow oil resources to stay under the sea when that can change my country. We want the same chances, this is a resource that can transform our future,” said Gabriel Mbaga Oblang Lima, Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons. “We need to make sure we satisfy energy security before we go towards the energy transition.”
Lima added that in around 20 to 25 years he hoped that the country could convert to electric vehicles. Meanwhile, Barkindo stressed that although Africa holds an estimated 120 billion barrels of proven reserves, 600 million people across the continent do not have access to electricity, and Africa is responsible for a small percentage of global emissions.
“What message are you sending to these folks? […] That this transition is going to be an exclusive one,” he said.
Other panelists noted that climate concerns were discouraging investors from entering traditional energy sectors which will still be required throughout the energy transition.
Suhail Al Mazrouei, the UAE’s Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, noted the importance of a “reasonable transition” that moves at a “realistic” pace.
