With a view to cutting down the global oil demand by 2.7 million barrels a day (within four months – equivalent to the oil demand of all the cars in China), reducing the risk of a damaging supply crunch, which has been essential at this point of time because of the continuing Russian invasion of Ukraine resulting in lower supplies to oil markets ahead of peak, IEA (International Energy Agency) has recently proposed some emergency measures that are not only worth for this particular period but also very useful for all times.
These efforts would reduce the price pain being felt by consumers around the world, lessen the economic damage, shrink Russia’s hydrocarbon revenues, and help move oil demand towards a more sustainable pathway.
IEA’s recent report has also included recommendations for decisions to be taken now by governments and citizens to transition from the short-term emergency actions included in the ‘10-Point Plan’ to sustained measures that would put countries’ oil demand into a structural decline consistent with a pathway towards net zero emissions by 2050.
Most of the proposed actions in the ‘10-Point Plan’ would require changes in the behaviour of consumers, supported by government measures. How and if these actions are implemented is subject to each country’s own circumstances – in terms of their energy markets, transport infrastructure, social and political dynamics and other aspects.
Thus, as far as any country’s energy security is concerned, the ‘behaviour of consumers’ matters a lot. As I feel, India has enough scope to reduce its oil consumption. However, political will matters a lot – and it has to be a united approach. I mean both the ruling party and opposition have to work together to mitigate the effect of distortion of the global oil supply chain.
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