Dr. Sultan Al Jaber calls for maximum energy, minimum emissions in ADIPEC opening address
Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Managing Director and Group CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), called for maximum energy with minimum emissions to ensure global energy security in his opening address at the 38th edition of the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition Conference (ADIPEC), held under the patronage of the UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
H.E. Dr. Al Jaber was speaking in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court, His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Member of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office and Chairman of the Executive Committee of ADNOC’s Board of Directors, ministers, senior government officials and chief executives from the global energy industry.
ADIPEC is taking place against the backdrop of complexities which the world is facing and H.E. Dr. Al Jaber sought the wise counsel of the UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in deciding whether to dwell on the challenges or focus on the opportunities in his remarks.
“A few days ago, as I was updating our President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, I asked for his advice. His response was reassuring. He told me ‘we cannot ignore the realities on the ground. We need to face them. We don’t shy away from challenges. We address them by adopting a positive mindset and by working out solutions with like-minded partners.’ And then he added: ‘And remember, pursuing progress is in our DNA.’” H.E. Dr. Al Jaber, who is also the Chairman of Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar), noted that “energy is everybody’s top priority” today as the global energy landscape goes through what he described as “a perfect storm”. He argued that now is not the time to point out that long-term underinvestment in oil and gas has made a difficult situation even worse as “the data is clear.”
“If we zero out hydrocarbon investment, due to natural decline, we would lose 5 MMbpd of oil each year from current supplies. This would make the shocks we have experienced this year feel like a minor tremor. If this year has taught us anything, it taught us that energy security is the foundation of all progress – economic social and climate progress,” H.E. Dr. Al Jaber said.
H.E. Dr. Al Jaber went on to explain that the solutions the world needs are also major opportunities. “Our world is on its way to being home to 9.7 B people by 2050. To meet their needs, the world will have to produce 30 percent more energy than today. And as we meet that need, we will be helping to bring electricity to almost 800 MM people who don’t have it today. We will also be helping to transform the lives of the 2.6 B people who have no access to clean cooking and heating fuels.
“The world needs all the solutions it can get. It is not oil and gas, or solar, not wind or nuclear, or hydrogen. It is oil and gas and solar, and wind and nuclear, and hydrogen. It is all of the above, plus the clean energies yet to be discovered, commercialized and deployed."
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