Falih said. “There is no shortage of oil potential … but the complexity of bringing oil online increases significantly as we tap into more difficult conventional and nonconventional oil resources.” This - along with the fluctuating oil price - means that developing energy projects will take more time and more money. Now, he said, is the time to step away from speculation and toward investment. “Capital prefers certainty. A vague global energy future would discourage essential investments across the energy value chain,” he said. There is also a need to invest responsibly by taking the environmental impact into consideration. “Societal expectations on climate change are real,” he said, “and the industry is expected to take a leadership role.” One way of doing that is to make fuel more energy efficient by enhancing oil recovery through carbon capture and sequestration and improving the efficiency of engines. Alternative energy is also an important part of the solution. The company is working to further develop solar technology in the Kingdom through a partnership with Japanese company Showa Shell and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology's Solar and Alternative Energy Science and Engineering Research Center. In the meantime, “the prudent course is to sustain global economic development - and with it social advancement - by making the best use of proven sources of energy,” he said. As alternative energies develop, so will the petroleum market. “Ultimately, as renewables begin to displace petroleum over time, there will be attractive uses for our hydrocarbons other than burning,” Al-Falih said. --MORE
