Commitment and Endurance Are Essential to Meeting Global Energy Needs
Meeting the world’s growing energy needs requires commitment and endurance by industries, governments and people from all over the world, says Rich Kruger, president of ExxonMobil Production Co., who was addressing the 2009 International Petroleum Technology Conference in Doha, Qatar.
“Our industry has faced significant challenges before,” Kruger says. “Each time we have shown that the key in times like these is to maintain a long-term view and focus on the fundamentals.”
Kruger stated that ExxonMobil has maintained its capital investment program through the economic downturn and has announced plans to spend $25 billion to $30 billion annually over the next five years on energy projects around the world. “These are record investment levels, made possible by our long-term view of industry cycles and our financial discipline,” he says.
Energy efficiency is critical in meeting growing energy needs, Kruger says. “It’s effectively the single greatest supply of energy that we have available right now. We estimate that by 2030, the amount of energy saved through efficiency gains will be equivalent to approximately 145 million barrels of oil a day, or about twice the amount of new energy from all sources,” he adds.
Kruger also pointed to the critical role of technology in helping bring new supplies to market with lower impact on the environment. Citing carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) as one such promising technology for the future, Kruger stressed that ExxonMobil has spent more than three decades researching, developing and applying the technologies that comprise CCS.
“We’ve made big strides. But as we advance new technologies, it’s essential to remember that energy solutions cannot be created in a vacuum that ignores issues of size, scope and cost,” he says.
Governments and policy makers play an important role in the industry, Kruger says. He stressed the need for government leaders who are willing to commit to building the stable fiscal and regulatory frameworks that support energy investments with the endurance to ensure those long-term policies are carried out and protected over time.
“Ultimately, success will be determined by how well industries, governments and people from all over the world come together in this shared commitment for a brighter energy future,” Kruger says.
|
