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| Rex Tillerson |
ExxonMobil Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson sees “very strong future demand globally” for natural gas, which he said, will be the “fastest growing” among fossil fuels until 2040.
Natural gas, he said, will grow something in the order of 1.5% to 1.6% a year over the next 30 years.
On the other hand, the combined global growth of all forms of energy will be less than 1% a year during the period.
“So, natural gas will be significantly higher than the overall energy growth,” Tillerson said in an exclusive interview with Gulf Times here yesterday.
He said the fastest growing in terms of natural gas demand will be the Asia-Pacific economies, China and India in particular.
“These countries do not have sufficient domestic supplies to meet their needs. And because of their location, they have limited connection by pipeline to other suppliers. So, LNG, which is very important to their supply today, will continue to be very important to their supply in future. We continue to believe, it is going to require additional supplies of LNG in the years to come,” Tillerson pointed out.
Asked whether the global economic turmoil will adversely affect the energy industry, Tillerson said, “Certainly today, we see the effects of a slower global economy on the overall energy demand…but it highly regional. We can see a slowdown and flattening of energy demand in North America… we see it in Europe as well. Yet in other parts of the world, economies are thriving. They include China, India. Importantly, the Middle East economies are doing quite well. We see a very robust energy demand.
“I think what is important for companies like ExxonMobil and the global energy industry as a whole is to always understand that we got to look beyond what’s happening to us today. Because meeting the global energy demand in the years to come is such an enormous undertaking. And the amount of time it takes us to develop large, significant supplies of energy are many.” For example, he said, it took 10 years for Qatar to “get to this point”.
He said it is important that investments are continued to be made in the global energy industry. This will be a key driver for global economic growth.
“We have to continue to invest even during those times where the economic conditions might suggest otherwise. We have to continue to look through the current situation and recognise the economies will recover, and the world will return to economic growth. It is challenging and difficult, as it may seem today, but the world will certainly need that crucial energy supply. So it is really important for us to invest, be disciplined about it, so that we will be positioned to supply the world’s economies with the energy it needs in the years to come,” Tillerson said.
On the 20th World Petroleum Congress that began in Doha yesterday, the ExxonMobil chairman said, “It is a significant event because all those who are in interested in global energy issues will gather under one roof. They include industry leaders, policymakers, government officials and non-government organisations. It occurs only every three years, which emphasises the importance of the World Petroleum Congress.”
“Also, it is meeting for the first time in the Middle East. Particularly significant is the fact that it is being held in Qatar, which is a “recognition for the country’s current role in global energy supplies and the role it will play in future.”