Naimi stated the world oil is not running out, saying that as some mature oil fields in the world surpass their peak production and start to decline, there are still large amounts of traditional and non-traditional resources that have not yet been exploited. These resources which are estimated at more than 4.5 trillion barrels would be produced to meet the world's energy needs over the next fifty years and beyond, he added. He expressed optimism that technical progress will enable us to the discovery of additional reserves from new and existing fields, sending them into production stages. For instance, a vast field was discovered in the submerged region in Brazil, thanks to new techniques offshore. He explained that the scarcity of resources would not constitute an obstacle to the global economic growth in the future. On the other hand, the limited production capacity is the real source of the current scarcity of supplies in the world, which represent the greatest threat to ensure the availability of energy required to feed future economic growth, he said, adding that the issue, in essence, is not the the scarcity of energy resources, but is primarily the issue of investment. / / Since the mid-eighties through 2000, oil supply capacity has vastly exceeded the world markets needs. As a result, prices remained low during most of that period. The low prices led to shrinking investments, and over the years, the oil industry faced a severe crisis. Growth in various stages of petroleum industry during that period has stopped, making them unprepared for the huge surge in demand for oil resulting from the significant increase in global economic activity over the past several years. Perhaps the greatest loss suffered by the industry was related to human capital, leaving the industry without skilled personnel to be able to compensate them. -- More
