Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Oct 07, 2025

Green energy policies pose risk of ‘stranded lives’ in poorer countries, says IEF chief 

Green energy policies pose risk of ‘stranded lives’ in poorer countries, says IEF chief 

The Global South — Latin America, Africa and parts of Asia — is suffering disproportionately from the energy crisis because of the “green” investment policies of wealthier nations, according to the boss of the International Energy Forum, a Riyadh-based think-tank.
Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Joe McMonigle, IEF secretary general, told Arab News that government policies in the West — specifically on environmental, social and governance issues — could lead to “stranded lives” in the poorer parts of the world.

“I just think, globally, there are policies in place either on the finance sector or investors, or sometimes specifically on the energy industry, to get out of the oil and gas business. You cannot finance the Global South, you can’t finance an oil and gas project in Africa or any other place. It’s even harder to finance a renewable project, because the cost is more in a place like Africa,” he said.

“At conferences like this, and energy conferences I attend, there’s so much emphasis on stranded assets. But in Africa, they’re concerned about stranded lives today,” he added.

However, McMonigle hopes that Western hostility to fossil-fuel investment might decrease as a result of what he called a new “two-way conversation” about the energy transition and climate change, especially after the Sharm El-Sheik UN Climate Change Conference, COP27, last year and the upcoming COP28 in the UAE.

“Up until Sharm El-Sheikh, the conversation had been very much one-way, with climate groups and NGOs on the environmental and climate side doing all the talking and not really listening to other viewpoints. But now, it’s very much a two-way conversation.

“Two years in a row of (the UN conference) being held outside of a Western capital is very important, because it brings a different perspective,” he added.

“Now you’re seeing a lot more participation by oil and gas companies. And I think there’s just an overall general acceptance now of the reality of the energy crisis and the imperatives of energy security. I think people are starting to realize that the energy transition is not easy,” he said.

The OPEC+ decision to cut 2 million barrels of oil per day last October had been proven correct, he said. “I think they’re feeling a little bit vindicated after the last cut. You know, there was a lot of hyperbole about what that would do to prices — none of that has really panned out.”

McMonigle said the outlook for oil demand was positive. “I think we’re going to see a spike in demand because of China reopening, unless something totally unforeseen happens there. In terms of the recession, though, I think that’s still very much an open question.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
×