Republican Lawmakers Say IEA Has Abandoned Energy Security Mission

In a release sent to Rigzone recently, Republican lawmakers said the International Energy Agency (IEA) has “abandoned its energy security mission”.

The release, which was sent to Rigzone by the office of one of those lawmakers - Cathy McMorris Rodgers - the Energy and Commerce Committee Chair and Eastern Washington Congresswoman - revealed that Rodgers and John Barrasso - Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member and a Senator for Wyoming - have sent a letter to the director of the IEA, Fatih Birol, “urging him to return the agency to its core mission of promoting energy security”.

“We are writing to you because we are concerned that the International Energy Agency has strayed from its core mission – promoting energy security,” the letter, signed by Rodgers and Barrasso and accompanying the release, stated.

“Indeed, we would argue that in recent years the IEA has been undermining energy security by discouraging sufficient investment in energy supplies – specifically, oil, natural gas, and coal. Moreover, its energy modeling no longer provides policymakers with balanced assessments of energy and climate proposals,” it added.

“Instead, it has become an ‘energy transition’ cheerleader,” the letter continued.

In the letter, Rodgers and Barossa also noted that, until recently, the IEA has served as a valuable source of reliable information on the security of oil markets and said it has provided a mechanism whereby oil consuming countries can respond effectively to oil shortages.

“The IEA also provides global energy forecasts as part of its mission,” Rodgers and Barossa stated in the letter.

“IEA forecasts have a tremendous influence on shaping how the world sees future energy trends. Consequently, the IEA must conduct its energy security mission in an objective manner. We believe the IEA is failing to fulfill these responsibilities,” they added.

When Rigzone contacted the IEA for comment on the release and letter, an IEA spokesperson said, “based on the mandates we have received from our member governments, the IEA is focused on helping countries in their efforts to maintain energy security and accelerate clean energy transitions”.

“In this context, we welcome feedback on our work and attach great importance to our dialogue with the U.S. Congress, where we regularly participate in hearings to provide expert testimony across a wide range of energy policy issues,” the spokesperson added.

“As part of the IEA’s long-term energy system modelling, we produce a number of scenarios that are built on different underlying assumptions about how the energy system might evolve over time,” the spokesperson continued.

“As we highlight in our work, the different scenarios aim to help inform decision making by showing the effects of different policy, technology, and investment choices. The scenarios are not predictions of exactly what will happen,” the spokesperson went on to state.

A commentary posted on the IEA website on March 11, which was penned by IEA Energy Security Analyst Ronan Graham and IEA Energy Security Researcher Ilias Atigui, stated that “a strong focus on oil security will be critical throughout the clean energy transition”.

“Much has changed in the global energy landscape since the IEA was founded 50 years ago, but the security of oil supply remains a pressing concern for governments across the globe,” the IEA representatives noted in the commentary.

“An enduring focus on oil security is a consequence of the continued need for oil to fuel cars, trucks, ships and aircraft, as well as to produce the petrochemicals necessary to manufacture countless everyday items,” they added.

“As nearly 200 countries recognized at the COP28 climate change conference in Dubai in December, the world needs to transition away from fossil fuels if it is to avoid the worst impacts of global warming,” they continued.

“However, while the world's dependence on oil is lessening, it remains deep-rooted, so supply disruptions can still cause significant economic harm and have a substantial negative impact on people’s lives,” they went on to state.

In a statement posted on its website on March 13, OPEC said it “took note of the International Energy Agency reaffirming the significance of oil security to energy transitions in its most recent commentary”.

“At OPEC, we are encouraged by this message and the reference to the continuing importance of oil to the world. The IEA says in its commentary - ‘an enduring focus on oil security is a consequence of the continued need for oil to fuel cars, trucks, ships and aircraft, as well as to produce the petrochemicals necessary to manufacture countless everyday items’,” OPEC added.

“These messages have been strongly voiced by OPEC for many years, and we will continue to reiterate that energy security, energy affordability and reducing emissions need to go hand-in-hand, as we look to an all-energies, all-technologies and all-peoples approach to energy transitions,” OPEC continued.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com