World liquid energy resources far bigger than expected
Thursday, 15 November 2007
ROME, Nov 14 (Xinhua): Saudi Aramco President Abdullah S. Jum'ah said here yesterday world liquid energy resources are far bigger than expected, noting he was optimistic over the future.
Speaking to the World Energy Congress in Rome, Jum'ah said there were enough conventional and non-conventional liquid energy resources available for petroleum to be a significant part of the global energy mix for decades to come.
In addition to conventional oil, the president said he believed that non- conventional resources of liquid energy such as condensates, natural gas liquids, bitumen, coal-to-liquids and bio fuels will contribute to the global supply.
According to Jum'ah, taking into account both conventional and non-conventional resources, there are 13-16 trillion barrels of total in-place liquids available worldwide.
"To put those figures in perspective, to date we have consumed only 1.1 trillion barrels of oil, or 7 to 9 per cent of resources in places, nearly all of that was conventional oil," he said.
However, some other speakers extended their worries about shortage of oil and gas, calling for developing alternative energy resources like renewable energy.
Paolo Scaroni, CEO of Italian energy giant Eni proposed three options for Europe to tackle energy shortage: "maximising gas availability, developing alternative energy sources and saving as much energy as possible."
Speaking to the World Energy Congress in Rome, Jum'ah said there were enough conventional and non-conventional liquid energy resources available for petroleum to be a significant part of the global energy mix for decades to come.
In addition to conventional oil, the president said he believed that non- conventional resources of liquid energy such as condensates, natural gas liquids, bitumen, coal-to-liquids and bio fuels will contribute to the global supply.
According to Jum'ah, taking into account both conventional and non-conventional resources, there are 13-16 trillion barrels of total in-place liquids available worldwide.
"To put those figures in perspective, to date we have consumed only 1.1 trillion barrels of oil, or 7 to 9 per cent of resources in places, nearly all of that was conventional oil," he said.
However, some other speakers extended their worries about shortage of oil and gas, calling for developing alternative energy resources like renewable energy.
Paolo Scaroni, CEO of Italian energy giant Eni proposed three options for Europe to tackle energy shortage: "maximising gas availability, developing alternative energy sources and saving as much energy as possible."