On Monday, the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA) released a report outlining the world energy outlook from 2008 to 2035.
According to the report, global energy consumption will have increased 53% from 2008 to 2035, led by rapidly industrializing nations such as China and India.
At the front of this will be oil demand, which is expected to increase to 112.2 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2035.
This is a 26.9 million barrel-per-day increase in oil use. And 82% of this growth in demand is due to transportation.
The problem, however, is that oil production is not expected to follow this growth pattern. In fact, the EIA estimates that oil production will only meet half of this: growth of 11.5 million barrels per day.
Prices will rise right along with consumption, estimated to hit $108 per barrel by 2020 and $125 per barrel in 2035 in the United States, says Smart Planet.
But perhaps other industries can help counteract this slow growth and price jump. Unconventional liquid fuel, like oil sands and biofuel, is expected to increase from the rate in 2008 of 3.9 million bpd to 13.1 million bpd by 2035, reported the Financial Post.
Natural gas will have the highest growth, a rate of 1.6%, jumping to 169 trillion cubic feet by 2035 from 111 trillion cubic feet.
Especially in the United States, as the natural gas extraction process of “fracking” develops, this resource will start to account for much more energy.
Renewable energy consumption is expected to grow at a rate of 2.8% per year, though in relation to total energy use this is minimal. By 2035 only 15% of the total global energy will be from renewable sources.
Global electricity will rise 2.3% worldwide by 2035, reports Power Engineering.
These are the sectors to keep an eye on in the coming years. Natural gas seems like a safe bet, though oil demand isn’t going anywhere even if prices do rise.
That’s all for now,
Brianna
