The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has projected a 23 million barrels per day oil supply shortfall by 2023 without upstream investments of up to $17.4 trillion.
It said the investments would be required by 2050 to meet future energy demand.
OPEC Secretary-General, Haitham Al Ghais, made this disclosure during the 24th Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Energy Week Conference and Exhibition on Tuesday in Abuja.
Al Ghais highlighted that the exploration and production sectors will absorb the largest share of investments in the oil sector, with total investment needs in these areas estimated at $14.2tn, or around $525bn annually.
Themed “Accelerating Global Energy Progress Through Investment, Partnership and Innovation”, in a pre-recorded message to the event, Ghais stated that meeting the world’s growing energy needs by 2050 will require sustained and large-scale investment across the oil sector, as outlined in OPEC’s long-term projections.
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Al Ghais stated that the world’s population is projected to rise from 8.2 billion in 2024 to nearly 9.7 billion by 2050, with 1.9 billion people moving to cities, placing more pressure on energy infrastructure but also presenting opportunities to improve energy access.
OPEC estimated that around 675 million people still lack electricity, and 2.3 billion do not have access to clean cooking fuels, maintaining that hydrocarbons will remain critical in addressing global energy poverty.
He said, “The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) says its research estimates a huge oil market deficit of 23 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2030, if investment in the global upstream industry stops.
“OPEC also said that global cumulative oil-related investments of 17.4 trillion dollars are required by 2050 to meet the energy demand.
“To meet the world’s growing need for energy, investment levels in all energy sources must increase significantly. OPEC’s World Oil Outlook saw global primary energy demand growing by 23 per cent between now and 2050.”
He noted that global energy consumption is expected to increase by 23% between now and 2050, driven by factors such as population growth, rapid urbanisation, and economic development.
Despite the shift to cleaner energy, OPEC projected that oil will still lead the energy mix at nearly 30% by 2050, with oil and gas together supplying over half of global energy needs.
Ghais stressed the importance of developing countries using their natural resources for growth, noting that innovation is driving cleaner, more efficient solutions across the oil and gas value chain.
