The 2012 edition of the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) World Energy Outlook (WEO) was released on 11/12/2012. The changes in the global energy map will alter outlooks on how various countries, regions and fuels interact in the global energy system in the foreseeable future.
According to the WEO, North America leads the change in the global energy balance. “North America is at the forefront of a sweeping transformation in oil and gas production that will affect all regions of the world, yet the potential also exists for a similarly transformative shift in global energy efficiency,” said IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven. “This year’s World Energy Outlook shows that by 2035, we can achieve energy savings equivalent to nearly a fifth of global demand in 2010. In other words, energy efficiency is just as important as unconstrained energy supply, and increased action on efficiency can serve as a unifying energy policy that brings multiple benefits.”
Other key points of the WEO are:
North American Oil and Gas – The growth in oil and natural gas production in the U.S. will result in a tremendous change in global energy flows. The WEO’s New Policies Scenario predicts that the U.S. will be a net exporter of natural gas by 2020 and will be almost self-sufficient in energy, in net terms, by 2035.
Fossil Fuels – Fossil fuels will remain dominant in the global energy amalgam. These fuels will probably remain supported by subsidies that jumped by almost 30% to $523 billion in 2011.
Renewables – Renewables become the world’s second-largest source of power generation by 2015 and begin to replace coal as the primary source by 2035. The increase of renewable energy, however, is dependent upon continued subsidies. Are you contemplating making the switch to a more renewable type of energy? If so, you might be tempted to do some research into environmentally friendly electricity provider options such as Gexa Energy plans.
Water – Water is key to energy production. The need of water for this makes water a critical component for energy projects.
Energy Efficiency – WEO asserts that this is a huge opportunity that is being unrealized. As stated within the report by Fatih Birol, IEA Chief Economist and the WEO’s lead author, “Our analysis shows that in the absence of a concerted policy push, two-thirds of the economically viable potential to improve energy efficiency will remain unrealized through to 2035. Action to improve energy efficiency could delay the complete ‘lock-in’ of the allowable emissions of carbon dioxide under a 2oC trajectory – which is currently set to happen in 2017 – until 2022, buying time to secure a much-needed global climate agreement. It would also bring substantial energy security and economic benefits, including cutting fuel bills by 20% on average.”
Download the Executive Summary at: World Energy Outlook
A slide presentation of the report is at: WEO slides