Yesterday, Al Attiyah Foundation organized a roundtable for CEOs for the year 2024 under the title “Energy Security: Future Demand and Promising Options,” in the presence of a number of senior decision-makers and international experts in the energy sector, where the factors affecting current and future energy security were discussed.
Discussions addressed how ongoing global conflicts impact energy security. While the Russian-Ukrainian war still casts a shadow on the energy prospects in Europe, especially due to the damage to the Nord Stream gas pipelines extending from Russia to Germany. Since the start of the conflict, Norway has replaced Russia as a major supplier of gas, and relatively mild temperatures during the winter and increased global production of liquefied natural gas have helped Europe overcome the supply dilemma during the winter.
The war demonstrated the importance of Europe’s independence from Russian fossil fuel imports, and helped Europe on its path toward energy transition. Since the beginning of the conflict, renewable energy production in Europe has increased in line with achieving clean energy goals.
Experts also discussed the issue of reconciling growing energy demand with the global need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to statistics from the Energy Institute, consumption of primary energy sources has increased by 1.4% annually over the past decade. It should be noted that these data highlight that the world faces the problem of high demand for energy, and the resulting high rates of carbon dioxide emissions.
His Excellency Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Al-Attiyah Foundation and former Minister of Energy and Industry, said: “It is a pleasure for me to host the second roundtable meeting for the year 2024, and to listen to the valuable insights from the guests and experts. His Excellency added: “The issue of energy security has become more urgent.” In recent years due to factors affecting access to reliable sources of energy at affordable prices.
