TheCable

Amin Nasser, chief executive officer (CEO) of Saudi Aramco, says the energy transition is failing and countries should abandon the “fantasy” of phasing out oil and gas. 

Nasser spoke on Monday, at the CERAWEEK conference organised by S&P Global in Houston, United States. 

“We should abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas,” Nasser said. 

“In the real world, the current transition strategy is visibly failing on most fronts as it collides with five hard realities.”

Nasser, who heads the largest oil company in the Middle East, said the energy transition narrative would increasingly be written by the developing nations of the global south. 

The countries, he said, are expected to drive demand growth above the 104 million barrels per day forecast for 2024 into the following year.

“Nations in the south cannot afford expensive energy solutions,” Nasser said.

“A transition strategy reset is urgently needed and my proposal is this: We should abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas and instead invest in them adequately reflecting realistic demand assumptions.”

Nasser projected a higher oil demand above 104 million barrels per day in 2025.

He also dismissed the notion of peak oil by 2030, saying it would take a while to come.