A major energy conference will go ahead in Riyadh on Sunday despite a Houthi attack on the city’s King Khalid International Airport that killed 12 people and injured 309, according to Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation.
The Saudi Ministry of Energy announced on Sunday that the 25th World Energy Congress of the World Petroleum Council had kicked off in Riyadh. The 17th ministerial meeting of the International Energy Forum (IEF) will be held on the sidelines of the conference, called Riyadh Energy Week, which runs until Thursday.
But EIF co-host Italy will join the meeting via video link. Nigeria, the other co-host, is sending a representative to the event.
The IEF brings together 68 countries that represent more than 90 percent of global oil and gas supply and demand. Its members include Saudi Arabia, the United States and Russia. The meeting comes as the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran has disrupted energy flows and pushed governments to reassess their energy security.
In this visual explanation, Al Jazeera examines where the world’s energy comes from, how much is produced in the Middle East and which countries have strategic reserves to draw on.
Where does the world’s energy come from?
Energy heats our homes, powers our cars, keeps the lights on, and runs the factories that make what we buy. It comes from fossil fuels like oil, coal and gas, as well as nuclear power and renewable energy.
Despite the rapid growth of renewable energy, fossil fuels still account for nearly 81 percent of global energy consumption. Oil is the largest source at 31.4 percent, followed by coal at 25.9 percent and natural gas at 23.5 percent. Traditional biomass, nuclear power and other sources make up the rest.
Production is concentrated in a handful of regions, so disruptions in each ripple through global markets.
The Middle East is the largest oil-producing region and North America is the largest producer of natural gas. Russia and Central Asia are also major producers of both products.
How energy from the Middle East reaches the world
The importance of the Middle East to energy markets is also a question of geography. Three narrow waterways connect its producers to consumers around the world.
Before the Iran war, about 27 percent of the world’s seaborne oil trade and nearly 20 percent of liquefied natural gas trade passed through the Strait of Hormuz, on the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula.
On the western side of the peninsula, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, and the Suez Canal connects the Red Sea to the Mediterranean. As the war in Iran has spread to other parts of the Middle East and the civil war in Yemen has intensified, traffic has been reduced across the Strait and Canal, forcing some energy shipments to take longer routes around Africa.
“This is probably the first time we’ve seen a major narrowing of a bottleneck,” said Richard Matthews, director of consulting and research at Gibson Shipbrokers, a London-based shipping brokerage and advisory service.
He told Al Jazeera that what makes the Strait of Hormuz different from other chokepoints is that “there is no alternative sea route. There are some pipelines, but there are no alternatives, which is why it has been so important in terms of cargo volume.”
Gulf ports are the departure point for much of the region’s energy to the rest of the world.
Which countries depend most on Middle Eastern oil?
Further down the supply chain, individuals and businesses are feeling the disruption from the rising cost of essential goods.
Countries that rely on Gulf oil, gas and fertilizers face higher prices, longer shipping times and the need to find alternative suppliers. Even when agreements have helped keep goods moving, additional costs are passed along the chain.
Eritrea and Madagascar are the most oil-dependent countries in the Middle East, each sourcing around 90% of their oil from the region. They are followed by Pakistan (78 percent), Japan (77 percent) and Kenya (77 percent).
Which countries rely most on Middle East gas?
Gas is even harder to replace than oil because most of it is transported as liquefied natural gas from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates via the Strait of Hormuz.
Countries that rely on such transportation pay more for fuel and electricity and compete for a smaller volume of goods. The poorest importers, with little storage, had the most difficulty finding alternatives.
The countries most dependent on Middle Eastern gas are mainly in Asia. South Korea sources 31% of its gas from the region, followed by India (29%), Pakistan (27%) and Taiwan (26%).
Who has the largest emergency oil reserves?
Countries keep emergency oil stocks in case supplies are disrupted or reduced, and these formed the world’s main reserve during war. This cushion is now worn out.
Western countries have little left to release, energy industry executives have warned, and the United States’ strategic oil reserve is at its lowest level since 1982.
“Estimates suggest that there are less than 6 billion barrels of commercial stocks remaining today, the vast majority of which is not practically available,” Amin Nasser, head of Saudi Aramco, said Monday at the Energy Intelligence Forum in London.
The International Energy Agency, which coordinates emergency stocks for its members, released a record 400 million barrels of oil in March. It is now preparing to release an additional 100 million barrels of crude and diesel to blunt soaring diesel prices, although some of that could come from oil released in March that has yet to hit the market.
A storm in the Gulf of Mexico and attacks in Saudi Arabia are once again threatening supplies, keeping oil prices above $100 a barrel.
Before this year’s releases, China held by far the largest reserves, estimated at 1.4 billion barrels, more than the rest of the list combined. The United States comes in second with 413 million barrels, followed by Japan with 263 million.
Gn bussni
