What does the ‘World Energy Outlook 2013' Report Say?

The annual “World Energy Outlook” report for 2013 was issued by the International Energy Agency (IEA) on Nov. 12, 2013.
 
"The rise of unconventional oil and gas and of renewables is transforming our understanding of the distribution of the world's energy resources," the report said. "The center of gravity of energy demand is switching to the emerging economies," particularly China, South Asia and the Middle East.
 
The projections for the upcoming years suggest that China is about to become the largest oil-importing country and that India will become the largest importer of coal by the early 2020s. The United States, on the other hand, is moving steadily toward meeting all of its energy needs by 2035. "These changes represent a re-orientation of energy trade from the Atlantic basin to the Asia-Pacific region," the report said.
 
While climate change is currently on the agenda, two-thirds of carbon emission is caused by energy generation, and considering the growing energy demand in the world, it is believed that it will be difficult to achieve the climate change goals. Crude oil has averaged $110 per barrel since 2011. But unlike crude oil prices, the prices of other fossil fuels have been subject to considerable regional variations. While differences in regional energy prices cause large electricity price differentials, this situation has a negative impact on competitiveness between countries.
 
The report suggests that renewables will account for nearly half of the power generation in 2035. Accordingly, there will be a major increase in China in renewable energy generation, which is thought to be more than the increase in the European Union, the United States and Japan combined. Although "coal remains a more common and cheaper option than gas for generating electricity in many regions, policy interventions to curtail air pollution, mitigate climate change and to improve efficiency will be critical in determining its long-term prospects," according to the report's executive summary. China is a prominent country in this regard as well. China uses as much coal as the rest of the world combined. While coal use is expected to decline in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, coal demand expands by one-third in non-OECD countries, particularly in China and South Asia.
 
Although the report asserts that technology and high prices are "opening up new oil resources," it says in its brief assessment that "this does not mean the world is on the verge of an era of oil abundance." Also, it is believed that problems will persist in terms of competitiveness, meeting demand and the market. Besides, the report puts forward that China will continue to increase its fossil fuel consumption especially for energy, and will become the leader in its consumption in upcoming years.