Uchenna Izundu
International Editor
ROME, Nov. 12 -- The world will have to double its energy supplies by 2050 to meet global demand, according to a new study published by the World Energy Council. The key challenge is whether stakeholders can successfully align resources and skills with where they are most needed.
Brian Statham, chair of the WEC Energy Scenarios Study, told reporters in Rome Nov. 12 that an "unprecedented level" of cooperation would be needed to address the world's energy problems. "Almost one third of the world's population doesn't have access to energy and they don't care about the environment," he said.
WEC has proposed that governments and companies should aim to halve the number of people without access to a minimum level of commercial energy to 1 billion by 2035, and halve that again to 500 million by 2050. Greenhouse gas emissions should be stabilized by 2035, and manmade emissions should be reduced by 2050, according to the report, Deciding the Future: Energy Policy Scenarios to 2050. The study focuses on policies needed for a sustainable energy future rather than using economic modeling to construct scenarios.
Statham said there are sufficient resources to meet demand. However, major investment is needed in research and development on energy sources and technologies, Robert Schock, WEC director of studies, told WEC Today. He said $10 billion is currently spent worldwide, but this figure is miniscule considering the importance of energy to the world economy which is estimated to be $50 trillion. "We need all energy options on the table. It's up to countries to decide whether they want to use nuclear or not. Energy efficiency is important for [research and development]."
The report concluded that new concepts for public and private partnerships would need to be developed and that governments need to provide consistent long-term signals for companies to make investments in the energy sector.
Contact Uchenna Izundu at [email protected].
