Expert comment on oil exporting countries failing to agree a cap on oil output

Expert comment on oil exporting countries failing to agree a cap on oil output. He is David Elmes, of , is head of the Global Energy Research Network and worked for 20 years as a consultant in the energy industry. Professor David Elmes said: “No deal in Doha is not a very surprising outcome, but a significant group of OPEC and non-OPEC oil producing countries meeting at all might indicate a new realisation of the role that oil and gas play in the global economy. While a lack of agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran looks to have blocked any deal this time, the question is what do all the major producers see as the long term picture for oil and gas? “Oil and gas will continue to be a vital part of our energy mix for some time to come, but the rising use of renewables and recent bankruptcies among the commercial coal sector show that oil and gas will have to compete more fiercely with other sources of energy and with the more efficient use of energy.“Well over half the world’s use of oil is in transport and rising fuel efficiency standards offset increasing vehicle demand. Then electric vehicles, smarter urban planning and biofuels also dent the need for increasing levels of oil consumption. Recent research by UKERC and involving Warwick illustrated that if a developed economy such as the UK wants to meet its greenhouse gas emissions goals, the use of more gas in electricity generation may be limited.“Moving from oil to gas, gas is often seen as a transition fuel with greater use over the medium term while lower carbon alternatives develop. But that asks companies to invest in new gas power stations that wouldn’t be used frequently enough or for long enough to make them the investments that companies can make.”