Huge investments in oil production are needed to meet future demand

Oil-producing nations will have to make huge investments in their production capacity, amounting to at least $421 billion over the next 23 years, to meet the projected increase in the demand for oil, according to a Saudi-Aramco study. By country, the investments required are: $130 billion in Saudi Arabia, $95 billion in the UAE, $80 billion in Iran, $46 billion in Qatar, $35 billion in Kuwait, $15 billion in Iraq and $10 billion each in Bahrain and Oman. The investment requirement by GCC countries alone is $326 billion.

This information was contained in a speech delivered by economic consultant, Khalid Al-Ageel, Kingdom representative in OAPEC executive bureau, Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia. He was speaking at the 4th GCC Economic Forum held in Dubai yesterday. His speech was entitled “The Future Prospects of GCC Oil in the Open Market.”

Using figures from the International Energy Agency (IEA) published in its International Energy Outlook (1EO 2005) he said global energy demand is expected to increase by 57 per cent between 2002 and 2025.

MENAFN