Fossil fuels, not renewables, will power the surge in electricity demand driven by electric vehicles and data centers, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said Monday in his latest broadside at the renewables industry. “While the icons of the transition are still clearly stuck in first gear, hydrocarbons are largely carrying the extra load,” Nasser told an industry conference. “This is not a true energy transition; it’s an energy addition.”
He warned that a power “demand tsunami” from AI and EV growth is forcing governments to backtrack on climate goals.
Separately, Aramco has put three domestic chemicals plants on hold as it shifts capital spending toward expansion in Asia, Bloomberg reported. The plants in the kingdom were designed to convert crude oil directly into chemical products. Those projects were at earlier stages than the ones in Asia, and the company has been borrowing to cover its huge dividends — mostly to the Saudi government — amid lower oil prices.