The energy sector is the source of about three-quarters of greenhouse gas emissions
Opec, IEA face-off reflects oil’s evolving role
The recent disagreement between Opec and the IEA over market volatility is rooted in the seismic shift required by the oil industry to avoid catastrophic climate change
Volatility, in particular the price effects emanating in the financial markets, was the keyword as some of the biggest names in oil market analysis gathered in Vienna for the ninth joint IEA-IEF-Opec Workshop at the end of April. The hospitality of the Opec secretariat was as welcoming as ever, and the tone of the discussions was friendly and cordial. However, on the same day of the forum, the new Opec secretary-general, Haitham al-Ghais, issued a statement criticising earlier comments of Fatih Birol, the IEA executive director, who said that Opec’s recent output cuts came as a “bad surprise”. Ghais pointed the finger at the IEA and its calls for an end to investing in oil as a more likely s
Also in this section
10 March 2026
By shutting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has cut exports of distillate-rich Middle Eastern crude, jet fuel and diesel, and is holding the energy market hostage
10 March 2026
Eni’s director for global gas and LNG portfolio, Cristian Signoretto, discusses how demand will respond to rising LNG supply, and how the company is expanding its own gas and LNG operations through disciplined, capital-efficient investments
9 March 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis sees increases in output from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Kazakhstan among others before region’s murky descent
9 March 2026
Energy sanctions are becoming an increasingly prominent tool of US foreign policy, with the country’s growth in oil and gas production allowing it to impose pressure on rivals without jeopardising its own energy security or that of its allies, argues Matthew McManus, a visiting fellow at the National Center for Energy Analytics
