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The world is entering an era of explosive growth in energy demand, and leaders should “tune out the noise, track the signal,” said Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC’s managing director and group CEO. The trend line — he noted in his opening address at ADIPEC, the energy exhibition and conference — shows that all sources of energy must be harnessed to meet surging electricity consumption driven by urbanization, two billion more air conditioners globally, and the expansion of AI, as well as the doubling of airline fleets to 50,000 planes by 2040.
Oil demand will remain above 100 million barrels a day beyond 2040, LNG output will rise 50%, and about $4 trillion in annual capital investment will be needed for grids, data centers, and all sources of energy to meet future demand, Al Jaber said.
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Other industry leaders agreed with the outlook. US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum — conveying greetings from President Donald Trump and affirming that Washington shares these energy values and policies — quipped that “a kilowatt of electricity is more valuable than ever,” adding that throughout history, knowledge was power, but now, thanks to AI, “power is knowledge.”