Kuwait city: OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al-Ghais has underscored the critical role of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in meeting the global objective of universal access to clean cooking fuels by 2030. He warned against the continued reliance on polluting fuels, which pose significant health risks.
According to Kuwait News Agency, Al-Ghais highlighted that about 2.1 billion people, or roughly a quarter of the global population, currently depend on polluting fuels for cooking. This reliance leads to household air pollution, which is responsible for approximately 3.2 million deaths annually. He stressed that enhancing the availability of clean cooking fuels is essential to addressing this issue, noting that the World Health Organization has set guidelines on what constitutes a clean fuel.
Al-Ghais pointed out that LPG is a key component in achieving the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 7, which targets universal access to clean cooking by 2030. He emphasized that the benefits of LPG are evident, as it emits half the greenhouse gas emissions of traditional biomass use and offers high energy efficiency, convenience, and transportability. LPG is primarily produced by the oil and gas industry, with 60 percent derived directly from oil and gas fields and 40 percent as a byproduct of oil refining.
The OPEC chief also mentioned the organization's contributions to the Roadmap for Brazil's G20 Presidency on a Clean Cooking Strategy in 2024 and the efforts of the current South African G20 Presidency in this area. OPEC advocates for policies and programs that expand LPG use, citing initiatives like the 'Oil Sustainability Program' and the 'Clean Cooking Roadmap' as examples of their commitment.
Al-Ghais noted that as LPG production is intertwined with the oil and gas industry, maintaining oil market stability is crucial to meeting the projected increase in LPG demand. He projected LPG demand to rise by 1.4 million barrels per day by 2050, reaching over 11.7 million barrels per day.
To support these goals, OPEC has called for timely and significant investments in the oil industry. The organization's World Oil Outlook 2025 estimates that $18.2 trillion in cumulative investments will be necessary by 2050 to ensure energy security and reduce energy poverty.