BP Chief: Renewables cannot meet our needs

BP CEO

It probably wouldn't come as a surprise to many to hear the CEO of one of the world's leading oil companies insisting that future energy needs will not be met by renewables alone, and that clean energy will need hydrocarbons to play a "major role".

That's what BP CEO Tony Hayward has claimed.

He told an audience at the London Business School that it would be foolish to rely on "ambitious" plans to expand offshore wind to meet demand in twenty years time, claiming that projections made by BP indicate that the global demand for energy will increase by 45 percent by the year 2030 and actually double by 2050.

Trying to meet this demand will cost around $1 trillion a year, every year according to BP. Meeting the increasing energy needs would also require changes in the "energy mix", Mr. Hayward said, including low carbon energy and greater energy efficiency.

"Re-engineering of the global economy"

New Energy Focus reports that Hayward argues it would be "foolish to underplay the role that natural gas and energy conservation can play in reducing carbon emissions" because of uncertainty surrounding many of the world's future renewable energy plans. But he does concede that the share of renewable power in the energy marketplace would increase.

He said that people had to be "realistic" about the overall contribution renewables could make - and the role oil and gas would therefore have to play.

"The challenge of creating a low-carbon economy is far from easy, requiring the wholesale re-engineering of the global economy over time," he said.

"Today, all of the world's wind, solar, wave, tide and geothermal energy accounts for around 1% of total consumption. Given the practical challenges of scaling up such technologies, the International Energy Agency can't see them accounting for much more than 5% of consumption in 2030, even with aggressive policy support.

"Undoubtedly nuclear energy and biofuels will play a part, and by 2030 carbon capture technology could be deployed at scale. But there will still be a major role for hydrocarbons."

Wide mix of energy types

It is quite dangerous for the chief of such a large and influential company to underplay the role of renewable energy at a time when so much time and money is being invested across the globe to create a cleaner, safer, more secure energy future not just to those who can afford it, but also to less developed nations where the effects of climate change are felt the most.

Whereas energy firms like BP have a right to make as much money as they can, they also have a responsibility to allow for the development of alternative sources of power in order to help improve the living standards of those who need it most.

However Hayward does not overwrite the need for clean energy all together, rather he stresses the need for a wide mix of energy types in 20 years time. A diversification of resources and technologies will be vital for moving us towards renewables until they are ready to stand alone in meeting the world energy demands.

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