His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Energy, affirmed that the historic production adjustments that OPEC and Non-OPEC producers have implemented, followed by the wider support we forged at the extraordinary G20 Energy Ministers Meeting led by the G20 Presidency of Saudi Arabia in April last year, cushioned the shocks from COVID-19, enhancing energy security and market stability.
In his speech today, during the opening of the 11th session of OPEC, IEA and IEF, His Highness said: "We are in a much better place than we were a year ago, but I must warn, once again, against complacency. The uncertainty is very high, and we have to be extremely cautious. The scars from the events of last year should teach us caution, so we realize that collective action is the best way to tackle the challenges ahead.”
His Highness indicated that long-term forecast models are very useful for obtaining a deep analysis, which helps the planning process with more knowledge and objectivity, noting that these models depend on some assumptions, but they are not able to take into account unexpected events. He is recalling the 2008 global financial crisis, and the many geopolitical events that destabilized markets and commercial traffic, not to mention the pandemic that disrupted economic activity and human lives, explaining that none of the models could predict such key events”.
"As the IEF enters the 30th anniversary of its first ministerial meeting, Saudi Arabia is proud to be one of the main countries which contributed to the establishment of the IEF Secretariat as one of the key international platforms for dialogue. and this cooperation took an official character in the 2010 agreement, This collaboration was formalised in the agreement of 2010, which identified specific areas for co-operation between OPEC, the IEA and IEF,” he said.
"The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will be absorbed and overcome through greater energy solidarity, dialogue, and data transparency —the fundamental aims and mission of the IEF. This is indeed what the Kingdom aimed to achieve during its G20 Presidency through the Energy Sustainability and the Energy Focus Working Groups. And I look forward to accelerating our joint efforts when Saudi Arabia will host the 17th International Energy Forum Ministerial Meeting and Business Forum in the second half of 2021,” he added.
