The world must act swiftly to invest in oil to prevent future energy emergencies as global demand for the hydrocarbon grows in the long term, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said on Tuesday.
"If we don't get it right this time we are sowing the seeds for future energy crises - not just one, but multiple," he told Reuters in an interview.
He was speaking a day after the organization released its 2022 World Oil Outlook which estimated that $12.1 trillion were needed in investments to meet rising oil demand in the long term.
Al Ghais sounded a note of optimism that policymakers at the upcoming COP27 climate summit will be more open to hearing the oil industry's point of view on the climate change debate.
Oil prices rose on Tuesday, paring losses from the previous session, as a weaker US dollar offset widening COVID-19 curbs in China.
This has stoked fears of slowing fuel demand in the world’s second-largest oil consumer.
Brent crude for January delivery rose 2 percent, to settle at $94.70 a barrel. The December contract expired on Monday at $94.83 a barrel, down 1 percent.
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 2.1 percent, to $88.44 per barrel.
The Brent and WTI benchmarks both registered monthly gains in October, their first since May, after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, a group known as OPEC+, cut their targeted output by 2 million barrels per day.
The US dollar eased back on Tuesday from a one-week top against a basket of major peers, as traders weighed what kind of message Federal Reserve officials will deliver at Wednesday’s monetary policy meeting.
A weaker dollar makes oil cheaper for holders of other currencies and usually reflects a greater investor appetite for risk.
China’s COVID-19 curbs forced the closure of Disney’s Shanghai resort on Monday, while production of Apple Inc iPhones at a major contract manufacturing facility could drop by 30 percent next month due to coronavirus restrictions, a source told Reuters.
Data released on Monday showed that Chinese factory activity unexpectedly fell in October, dragged down by softening global demand and strict domestic COVID-19 curbs.
US oil output climbed to nearly 12 million barrels per day (bpd) in August, the highest since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, even as shale companies have said they do not see production accelerating in coming months.
Russian oil production stood at 9.9 million barrels per day in October, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Tuesday, according to Interfax news agency, well below the country’s quota within the OPEC+ deal.
That was in line with his previous forecast and production in September, but below Russia’s quota of 11 million bpd under the OPEC+ global accord.
The quota is set to fall to 10.5 million bpd from November, in accordance with the OPEC+ agreement.
The data excludes gas condensate, a type of light oil that usually accounts for some 8 percent of crude oil and gas condensate production.
