The head of Saudi Aramco, Amin Nasser, has said that a global oil shortage is on the horizon. He recently revealed that the energy industry turning its back on the search for new oil for more than a decade is worrying.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Amin called for a return to spending on exploration and production as global demand for oil continues to grow.
According to him, the current investment in exploration is extremely low, and if nothing is done in the near future, the reality might spell doom for oil supply across the globe.
“We had a decade . . . where people didn’t explore. It’s going to have an impact. If it doesn’t happen, there will be a supply crunch,” he said.
He further noted that the US shale boom that has taken over the world with oil for more than 10 years is unlikely to repeat itself.
Amin concluded by saying that the world’s future supply rests on the actions oil companies take now.
“Eighty to 90 per cent of growth came from shale. If you look at the next 15 years, shale is most likely to plateau and decline. Where are you going to bring the additional barrels to meet the demand?
We monitor final investment decisions and you can see a big drop in decisions and projects that are coming into the market.
For us, it’s strategic. We’re exploring and adding significant amounts of reserves,” he added.
