The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on the 5th that by 2050, plastics and other petrochemical products will drive global oil demand and offset the slowdown in automobile fuel consumption.
The IEA said that despite the government’s efforts to reduce oil and gas pollution and carbon emissions, emerging economies such as China and India are rapidly developing and will boost demand for petrochemical products.
According to the IEA, with the development of electric vehicles and the improvement of engine energy efficiency, transportation demand for oil will slow down by 2050, but this will be offset by the growth in demand for petrochemical products.
According to the IEA, the petrochemical industry is expected to account for more than one-third of global oil demand growth by 2030 and will approach half by 2050.
In 2017, the global demand for petrochemical raw materials was 12 million barrels per day, accounting for about 12% of total oil demand. The data is expected to grow to nearly 18 million barrels per day by 2050.
Most of the demand growth will occur in the Middle East and China as these two regions are building large petrochemical plants.
ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch/Shell Oil Group plan to invest in new petrochemical plants over the next few decades, betting on rising demand for plastics.
The use of plastics is receiving increasing concerns as plastic waste flows into the oceans and endangers marine life, prompting several countries to ban or partially ban the use of plastic bags or to charge for one-time use.
The IEA report said that the government’s efforts to encourage recycling to reduce carbon emissions may only slightly affect petrochemical growth.
