Mideast to require 10% of world’s energy

Mideast to require 10% of world’s energy

Region’s demand for energy set to hit 10 percent by 2030, says IAE boss

January 19, 2010 10:53 by kippreport

The Middle East will require 10 percent of the world’s energy by 2030, according to Richard Jones, deputy executive director of the International Energy Agency (IAE).

Jones says that, given the hydrocarbon resources in the region, local energy demands should be an even greater spur for the Middle East states to develop renewable sources of power.

“Over the next twenty years we think that ten percent of the world’s energy demands will come from this region,” Jones told journalists at the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.

“We used to think of the Middle East as a producer of energy but more and more it’s a consumer of energy, and that means they should think about energy efficiency because every barrel that they don’t use here at home they can export.”

Jones went on to encourage investment in renewable energies. “If you’re an investor and you have more diverse stocks, you’re safer. The same is true for energy. Our mission at the International Energy Agency is to promote security and that means diversify.”