Insufficient investments can cause oil, gas price hikes, says UAE minister

/ Oil & Gas / Tuesday, 09 November 2021 05:58

United Arab Emirates energy minister Suhail al-Mazrouei said insufficient investments in the oil and natural gas industry could lead to a hike in energy prices.

Speaking at the Africa Oil week conference, he said that oil and gas are needed to ensure reliable supply of energy during the transition period required to implement non-carbon emitting projects.

The UAE, he added, is willing to invest in African solar and wind projects, and sees potential in developing hydrogen as an energy source.

The Gulf state announced in October a plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, providing for 600 billion dirhams ($163 billion) in investment in renewable energy.

Additionally, the UAE and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) have recently announced the launch of the Transition Accelerator Financing (ETAF) Platform, a new global climate finance facility to accelerate the transition to renewable energy in developing countries, on the sidelines of COP26, in Glasgow, the United Kingdom.

The UAE committed $400 million in funding provided by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) toward the platform’s goal of securing a minimum of $1 billion in total funding.

A global energy crisis has been triggered due to all time high gas prices in European and Asian markets. The oil price is at a three-year high and the price of coal is soaring on the back of energy shortages across China, India and Germany.

The surge in demand is being driven mostly by recovering economies and anticipated extreme weather across Europe and north-east Asia. China is stockpiling domestic coal and gas reserves, and Russia is reluctant to supply gas to Western Europe.

Responding to the crisis, US energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm has emphasized that renewables have an important role to play when it comes to ensuring energy security and safeguarding against the price fluctuations associated with fossil fuels.

Latest Issue

Please publish modules in offcanvas position.