Saudi Energy Minister: Focusing on renewable energy sources only is a mistake

Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said today, Sunday, that focusing solely on renewable energy sources is a mistake, and that the world may not be able to produce all the energy needed for economic recovery from the Corona virus pandemic.

Prince Abdulaziz added - during an energy conference in Riyadh - that the epidemic crisis and the ongoing recovery taught us the value of being cautious.

He added that the lack of investment has led to a rise in energy prices, but Saudi Arabia continues to invest in production capacity, as reported by Reuters.

And the Arab oil and energy ministers said today, Sunday, that “OPEC Plus” must abide by its current agreement, which adds 400,000 barrels per day to production per month.

"In the interest of the entire energy markets, OPEC Plus must remain committed to the current ongoing and sustainable agreement," Iraqi Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar said.

Saudi Arabia's oil exports are declining

On a related issue, figures from the Joint Initiative for Oil Data (JODI) showed today, Sunday, a decline in Saudi crude oil exports by 0.2% on a monthly basis, last December.

The Kingdom's exports amounted to 6.937 million barrels per day last December, compared to 6.949 million barrels per day in the previous November, according to Anadolu Agency.

And Saudi Arabia’s production rose last December by 1.1% on a monthly basis to 10.022 million barrels per day, from 9.912 million barrels per day in the previous November.

Saudi Arabia is the largest exporter of crude oil in the world, although it comes third in the volume of production after Russia and the United States.

As of May 2020, Saudi Arabia began reducing its oil production to an average of 7.5 million barrels per day, in compliance with the decision to reduce production by 9.7 million barrels per day by the “OPEC Plus” alliance.

Since August 2020, the alliance has begun easing production cut restrictions, currently reaching about 3.2 million barrels per day, amid expectations of reaching a reduction of zero barrels by next September.