Global energy demand is likely to increase by one-third by 2035, but the balance of power is expected to change dramatically, according to the latest annual World Energy Outlook report by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The report claims that increasing production of oil in North America and Brazil means that OPEC countries have a smaller part to play in supplying the world with oil over the next 10 years but the Middle East will regain its position as a major oil source in the mid-2020s.
RELATED: Asian energy markets to change in coming years
Meanwhile, energy demand in Asia is going through substantial changes. China is expected to step down from its position as a leader of energy consumption in the 2020s, with India and Southeast-Asian countries predicted to overtake China in driving oil consumption. By the 2020s, the Middle East will make a step forward and will become the world's second-largest gas consumer. By 2030, the Middle East will be the third-largest oil consumer, the IEA said.
By the end of the examined period, in 2035, the total amount of energy-related carbon emissions is expected to rise by 20 percent. The IEA estimates that this would put the world on track for an average temperature increase of 3.6 degrees C in the long-term. The internationally recognized climate change target is 2 degrees C, so meeting that over the next two decades is unlikely. In its report the IEA stresses the importance of introducing subsidies for renewables, in a bid to double the amount of energy produced from renewable sources by 2035.
