Energy and water are more interconnected than ever – massive volumes of water are required in most energy generation processes, from cooling in thermal power plants and generating hydropower, to extracting and processing fossil fuels and irrigating crops used to make biofuels. Conversely, a vast amount of energy is needed to extract, treat and distribute water. It is in this context that the Al-Attiyah Foundation and LSEG held its third webinar of 2024 titled The Energy Water Nexus on September 12. Moderator: Stephen Cole, International Journalist and Executive Producer Speakers: Alicia Dauth, IEMA Credentialed Specialist, Alliance for Water Stewardship Gordon Edge, Head of Policy & Research, International Hydropower Association (IHA) Hans Goossens, President of Water Europe and CEO of De Watergroep
|
|
The oil and gas sector provides more than half of the global energy, but accounts for just 1 percent of clean energy investment globally. As the rise of clean energy pressures fossil fuel demand, oil and gas producers must play a bigger role in the green energy transition.
Increasing renewable power generation capacity is weighing on natural gas demand in Europe, North America and some Asian Pacific markets. Greater consumption of natural gas will likely be concentrated in fast-expanding Asian economies and gas-rich countries of the Middle East and Africa.
It is under this context, that the Al-Attiyah Foundation hosted its second webinar of 2024 titled Natural Gas: Security of Demand in a Greener World on June 10, 2024.
|
|
Renewable energy is poised to become even more prevalent in 2024 as decarbonisation accelerates and more investment is made into the sector.
Falling costs have been the biggest factor in the growth of solar and wind capacity, with renewables now the cheapest form of power. This has helped renewables garner more investment than fossil fuels.
It is under this context that the Al-Attiyah Foundation held its first webinar of 2024 on March 7th. The webinar convened a distinguished panel of energy experts and policy consultants to explore the latest opportunities and barriers to the energy transition. With a special focus on renewable energy, our panelists discussed the most anticipated trends for this year and the main concerns disincentivising investment.
The expert guest speakers were:
Luma Saqqaf, Chief Executive Officer, Ajyal Sustainability Consulting
Gareth Lewis, Partner and Global Lead, Development Services, ERM
Rory McCarthy, Chief Operating Officer, Yellow Door Energy
|
|
COP28 led to significant pledges from participating nations to address global warming, emphasising the need for increased financing in the energy transition, particularly in less-developed countries, to effectively combat climate change. These were the conclusions drawn by the expert panelists in the December 12 online webinar.
|
|
In the Foundation’s third webinar of 2023, internationally renowned industry experts debated the merits of the hydrogen rainbow, the best means to evaluate the carbon footprint of varying hydrogen production methods and the prospects for new international standards that will mark a significant step in ending these ambiguities.
|
|
LNG is advancing towards becoming a global commodity following the expansion of markets, growing volumes, and liquidity, and increase in spot-market transactions.
As buyers push for destination-flexible contracting and trading that allows them to resell or swap LNG cargoes, vessels are gaining more freedom to trade, and market players are better optimising their positions.
These trends have brought new players to the LNG industry, which traditionally comprised a small group of participants. According to the International Group of Liquefied Natural Gas Importers, the number of LNG importing markets has increased almost fivefold since the 1990s.
|
|
The first webinar of our 2023 series welcomed a panel of international experts from industry and academia to discuss the energy sector’s net-zero ambitions, including current targets and future scenarios, and the extent to which these goals are achievable.
The energy industry is committed to reducing its emissions and transitioning towards netzero but achieving these targets will require a more realistic approach from policymakers to support the sector’s efforts, panellists said.
Put simply, more money is needed. To get on track to achieve net-zero, $4.8 trillion must be invested annually to 2030 in electricity generation, fuel production, infrastructure, industry, transport and buildings.
|
|
The webinar, titled "From Glasgow to Sharm El Sheikh: How Will COP27 Reshape the Global Energy Landscape?," was held 1 November 2022 and saw four global experts discuss the potential impact of COP27. COP26 in November 2021 was one of the most significant summits on climate change, leading to new pledges from world governments to cut emissions and accelerate the green energy transition. The Glasgow conference yielded several breakthrough agreements, including the Global Methane Pledge, the Zero Emission Vehicle Pledge, the Deforestation Pledge, and the Glasgow Pact. Guest Speakers: David Hone, Climate Change Adviser at Shell International Jill Duggan, Executive Director at the Environmental Defense Fund Europe Johnathan Shopley, Managing Directors at External Affairs Climate Impact Partners.
|
|
The webinar, titled “The Changing Dynamics in the LNG Shipping Market,” was held on the 14th of September 2022 and saw three global experts explore the remarkable revival of Floating Storage and Regasification Units (FSRUs) , Europe’s determination to end its dependence on Russian gas imports, changing LNG trade routes and how the industry can meet tougher environmental rules.
With nearly 400 of the 640 existing LNG carriers unlikely to comply with International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) carbon intensity indicator from 2025 onwards, owners are now looking to convert their older ships to FSRUs to facilitate LNG imports. However, this presents another dilemma, because conversions will take shipping capacity out of the market, creating more supply pressure.
|
|
The webinar, titled “ESG Transformation: Seizing the Opportunity,” was held on the 14th of June 2022 and saw four global experts examine the business case for ESG and the impact of the pandemic and other geopolitical crises on the implementation of ESG practices.
Environment, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria are a set of standards for a company's behaviour used by socially conscious investors to screen potential investments. Environmental criteria consider how a company safeguards the environment, including corporate policies addressing climate change. Social criteria examine how a company manages relationships with employees, suppliers, customers, and the communities where it operates. Governance deals with a company's leadership, executive pay, audits, internal controls, and shareholder rights.
|
|
The Al-Attiyah Foundation webinar, titled Stepping up the Pace of Hydrogen Development, was held on 7 March and brought together world-renowned experts to discuss the role environmentally friendly hydrogen can play in the ongoing energy transition and how using the gas in more urban activities can help nations achieve their net-zero carbon emissions targets.
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) forecasts hydrogen will account for nearly 12% of global energy use by 2050, providing a $2.5 trillion investment opportunity through to 2050 for utilities, equipment makers and others seeking to reduce their emissions.
|
|
Webinar Context: The global energy crisis that the planet is currently facing has shown how dependent the world is on fossil fuels. Oil and natural gas prices recently soared to the highest levels in years, pushing up electricity bills as widespread energy shortages hit Asia and Europe. The crisis raises questions about whether the world is ready for the green energy revolution when it is currently struggling to power itself. On the other hand, the crisis shows the need to move further away from coal, gas, and oil as prices for those commodities spike. That said, renewables are not expanding quickly enough to satisfy the rebound in global electricity demand, which is set to grow by 4% in 2022, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). Renewables are expected to cover only half the projected increase in global electricity demand. The rest of the demand will be covered mostly by fossil fuel-based generation. As we approach the end of the year, this webinar brought together international sustainability and energy experts to discuss the possible pathways for 2022 and how the world can accelerate the shift to a sustainable trajectory in light of IEA’s alarming predictions.
|
|
This webinar explores how hydrogen could accelerate the world’s journey toward net-zero carbon emissions and the obstacles that must be overcome for it to replace fossil fuels in “hard-to-abate” sectors such as transportation, power aluminium, concrete and steelmaking (which all require high-temperature process heat).
|
|
The world’s watchful gaze will be fixed on Glasgow at the beginning of November 2021, as global leaders and important industry figures convene for the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26). Expectations are running high, with hopes that the two-week climate conference will call on all nations to end the use of polluting vehicles, decarbonise the energy system, abandon coal power, and stop deforestation – all in the pursuit of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
|
|
In 2020, global electricity demand fell by 5%, the largest drop since the 1930 global economic crisis, according to the IEA. Furthermore, all fuels saw a decline, except for renewable energy, which grew by 1% last year. Oil demand had seen some recovery in 2020, but the rebound slowed considerably in November, and slipped in December as renewed lockdowns and rising infection rates, due to the global pandemic, hit consumption. The IEA subsequently slashed its oil demand outlook for 2021 by 300,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 5.5 million bpd. While it is difficult to predict the direction of oil prices due to the uncertainty of demand, experts suggest a recovery could be underway at the beginning of 2022, given that vaccinations continue to be rolled out successfully worldwide.
|
|
While substantial progress has been made in globally increasing access to clean drinking water and sanitation, billions of people, mostly in rural areas, still lack these basic services. Worldwide, 3 in 10 people lack access to safely managed drinking water services, 6 in 10 people lack access to safely managed sanitation facilities, 2 out of 5 people do not have a basic hand-washing facility with soap and water, and more than 892 million people still practice open defecation.
|
|
As the world looks forward to 2021, Covid-19 and its continuing impact on energy demand will likely remain the background against which other significant events will unfold. Yet, by any measure, 2021 will be a significant year for the industry. Policy changes arising from the COP-26 meeting in November, the potentially game-changing transformation of energy in the US post the November 2020 election, and the launch of the 14th Five-Year Plan in China will all have repercussions, adding to the uncertainties the sector is already facing.
|
|
The Al Attiyah Foundation in partnership with Refinitiv is hosting a webinar on ‘LNG Market:The Road to Recovery’ on 4th November 2020 at 12 PM (Qatar time). The Al-Attiyah Foundation is an independent think tank aiming to provide robust and practical knowledge and insights on global energy and sustainable development topics and communicate these for the benefit of the Foundation’s Members and community.
|
|
hydrogen are produced annually worldwide for various applications, including oil refining, ammonia and methanol production, metal processing, food processing, transportation, and power generation. Most of this hydrogen -around 95%- is produced from fossil fuels by steam methane reforming (SMR) of natural gas (the cheapest and most common method), as well as by partial oxidation of methane, and coal gasification.
|
|
This is the fourth session of our Energy Webinar Series looking at the role that sustainable energy can, should and will play in national and regional economic stimulus plans, and why it is more pertinent to economic planning than before.
Governments worldwide plan to inject huge amounts of money into their economies as they seek to bounce back from lockdown.
|
|
The LNG market was already oversupplied before the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic, a trend that has triggered low prices and led to supply-contract cancellations and cargo deferments by importing countries. But despite the current headwinds being faced by the LNG industry, there are good reasons to be optimistic about a brighter future.
|
|
Transportation accounts for about 25% of world energy demand and for around 60% of all the oil used each year. Road transport and aviation were especially strong sources of fuel demand growth in recent years, accounting for 85% and 8% of the energy consumed by transportation, respectively. With most vehicles staying off the road during the coronavirus lockdown, and with the suspension of international flights and maritime travel, the energy sector will have to cope with a drastically reduced demand for transport fuel. This falling demand, along with the lack of oil-storage options, has pushed the price of worldwide benchmark Brent crude below $20 in April.
|
|
The COVID-19 pandemic has globally affected many industries and in particular the oil and gas industry. Refined products are largely oversupplied, and refiners are scrambling to store gasoline and jet fuel at sea, but tanker rates are increasing, and available storage is dwindling. With no place left to go, refiners are reducing output and in danger of shutting down. As onshore storage fills up, demand for floating storage is booming, with traders and producers stashing oil to deliver at a later date for a higher price.
|
|