| Advertisement |
June 14 (UPI) -- Shifts in renewable and alternative forms of energy suggest global crude oil demand will peak by the end of the decade, the Paris-based International Energy Agency said Wednesday. The IEA expects oil demand will "slow almost to a halt" in the years ahead as the so-called energy transition -- the pivot away from fossil fuels -- accelerates.
Advertisement
"The shift to a clean energy economy is picking up pace, with a peak in global oil demand in sight before the end of this decade as electric vehicles, energy efficiency and other technologies advance," IEA executive director Fatih Birol said.
With an expected move away from crude oil, the IEA estimated that $2.8 trillion will be invested globally in the energy sector this year, with around $1.7 trillion of that going to cleaner technologies such as nuclear power, renewable energy and electric vehicles.
For just solar power, investments are on pace to overtake capital spending on oil production for the first time.
The rest of that, some $1 trillion, will go toward more traditional forms of energy, such as coal and crude oil.
Despite his comments Wednesday in the IEA's monthly oil report, Birol has a long track record of vocal support for alternative energy, particularly electric vehicles.
The IEA said more than 10 million electric vehicles were sold last year, and sales are expected to reach 14 million in 2023 -- a pace the agency described as "explosive."
Cars, meanwhile, are just the "first wave," with buses and long-haul trucks expected to follow recent trends.
Birol said in April that EVs are ushering in a historic transformation not only for the global energy landscape, but for the auto manufacturing sector worldwide.
With the IEA predicting something of a sea change in global energy markets, Birol offered a stark warning to energy companies.
"Oil producers need to pay careful attention to the gathering pace of change and calibrate their investment decisions to ensure an orderly transition," he said Wednesday.
