The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries says the global oil sector needs about $12.6-trillion investment to contribute to achieving future global oil demand.

 The OPEC Secretary General, Mohammad Barkindo, disclosed this at the Virtual 11th IEA-IEF-OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks on Wednesday.

“The global primary energy demand is forecast to continue growing in the medium and long term, rising by a hefty 25 percent by 2045. Oil will remain the largest contributor to the energy mix in 2045 at 28 percent.

“To meet this future demand, the global oil sector will need cumulative investment of $12.6 trillion in the upstream, midstream, and downstream through to 2045.

“These investments are essential for both producers and consumers,” he said.

According to him, underinvestment remains one of the greatest challenges for the industry and was worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

He noted that throughout 2020, investments declined by 30 percent, adding that there was the need to work towards creating an investment-friendly climate.

“There is a common thread linking the cooperation between our organisations; the “Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) actions to restore market stability and the producer-consumer dialogue.

“It is something deeply ingrained in OPEC’s raison d’etre. In our fast-changing and unpredictable world, we seek to contribute to greater stability, more predictability, and enhanced transparency,” the OPEC boss said.