Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin Calls For Great Investment In Energy For Global Resilience

Photo: Special

JAKARTA - Rosneft CEO, Igor Sechin, delivered his main speech at the special session of the Verona Eurasia XVII Economic Forum which was held at Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates, Thursday, December 5, 2024.

On the occasion, the CEO of the Russian energy company submitted a report entitled Farewell to Illusions: The Global Energy Industry is Trapped by Thucydides. Igor Sechin, in his speech, highlighted the importance of energy resilience and Eurasian integration. He emphasized that trust-based and mutual respect-based cooperation is the key to tackling increasingly complex economic and energy challenges.

Furthermore, Igor highlighted fossil fuels that still play an important role in ensuring the resilience of global energy. The Bank of America projects that global energy consumption will increase by 9 million barrels per day (bpd) every year driven by the economic growth of developing countries. Likewise, global demand for oil is expected to increase to 20 million bpd by 2050. This figure shows a fantastic amount, compared to renewable energy growth which is predicted to only grow by 2 million bpd.

"Large investment in the energy sector is urgently needed. According to OPEC, annual investment in oil production should increase 50 percent to $550 billion by 2050 to meet market demand and offset the decline in conventional reserves," Igor Sechin said in his speech.

This shows that there is complexity faced in the global energy transition. The Rosneft leadership noted that renewable energy capacity needs to increase tenfold to 35 terawatts by 2050 to achieve the net zero emission target. It also highlights the high emission from electric vehicle production, suggesting that green technology currently still has major challenges. According to his records, electric vehicle production produces 35-50 percent more emissions due to the battery production process.

Discussion on geopoliticals, Igor Sechin emphasized Russia's contribution to stabilizing the global energy market.

"Russia continues to actively contribute, one of which is through OPEC+ to help improve market stability and protect the interests of producers. Strategic cooperation between Eurasian countries is important to ensure long-term energy security, both in this region and globally," he explained.

Closing the forum at the special session, Igor Sechin stressed the great potential for Eurasian cooperation, citing the words of the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan, "Unity is a path to strength, honor, resilience, and common goodness."

The XVII Eurasia Verona Economic Forum, organized by Roscongress and the Italian Association of Conoscere Eurasia, carries the theme Art of Innovation and takes place on 5-6 December 2024. This forum includes six thematic sessions that discuss strategic issues and opportunities for cooperation in the Eurasian region.

Forum discussions highlight important issues such as energy and environmental collaboration, dynamics between regionalization and globalization, the role of infrastructure and transportation in regional and global development, changes in the financial sector, new technological challenges in the era of digitalization, global industrial needs, to food security and efforts to fight management.

This forum is an important platform to discuss the future of the Eurasian region, by emphasizing innovation, sustainability, and international collaboration as the key to inclusive and sustainable development.