JEDDAH: A greater role for private sector investment in the Middle East’s oil & gas sector is required to support governments and national oil companies to meet growing energy demand in the region, said Majid Jafar, CEO of Crescent Petroleum and Vice-Chairman of the Crescent Group, reported Saudi Gazette on Tuesday.
According to estimates by the International Energy Agency, the oil & gas sector in the Middle East will require a total of $1.6 trillion of new investment over the next 25 years, equating to $65 billion annually.
In a speech at the 2013 Oil & Money Conference in London, attended by regional energy ministers and corporate leaders from the international oil industry, Majid Jafar emphasized the need to provide incentives for investment and increased partnership between the public and private sectors to address the growing needs of energy supply in the Middle East region, which now has the fastest growing energy markets in the world.
He also highlighted the need to tackle energy subsidies, which are costing the Middle East North Africa region over $500 billion annually, according to the latest report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The Middle East’s energy demand, equivalent to 12.5million barrels oil equivalent per day in 2010, is forecast to expand to 15.5m BOE/D by 2020 and to reach 18.5m BOE/D by 2030 of which oil & gas will still contribute 96 percent emphasizing the resources’ continued importance to the region.
But meeting this demand should not be difficult, since the Middle East is endowed with 48 percent and 43 percent of global oil & gas proven reserves, respectively. (QNA)
