ExxonMobil predicts boom in gas demand

• 12 years ago (2011-05-24)
• Junior Isles

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Global demand for natural gas is expected to balloon in the next two decades according to a recent forecast from ExxonMobil. Rob Gardner, manager of the economics and energy division at the ExxonMobil corporate strategic planning department, predicts gas will become a key area of investment as fuel demand for power generation surges.

Driven by GDP and concerns to cut emissions, global power generation is set to rise by about 85 per cent from 2005 to 2030 when natural gas is expected to cover more than a quarter of the world’s electricity needs. “The Middle East is an important mix of energy supplies going forward and will continue to be,” Gardner told a briefing, citing the strong importance of oil and coal followed by nuclear and new renewables.

ExxonMobil’s Outlook for Energy: A View to 2030 report also found the developed world is going to see efficiency and climate policies, and the developing economies will continue to grow rapidly.

“Our investments are balanced but we have made significant gas investments recently,” he said. “But the type of technology that we develop is more on the lines of how you find it and produce it, or transport it economically.” He said the company has developed its drilling and completion technology due to the rise of shale gas that requires hydrofracturing or ‘fracking'.