How is the global energy market changing?
In recent years, a number of changes have taken place within the global energy market. Some regions have seen growth, while others have seen investment fall. This article aims to provide an overview of the changes that have occurred and insight into what this means for recruitment.
Investment in the global clean energy market
There’s a growing focus on clean energy, with global investment in reaching $333.5 billion in 2017. However, Bloomberg revealed in a recent report that investment in Europe actually decreased by $20.3 billion compared to 2016. Interestingly, despite political influences, the US were the second biggest investing country. The chart below compares some of the levels of investment in 2016 and 2017.
Throughout 2017, the US, Australia, Spain, and France all saw growth in investment. In comparison places such as the UK, Germany, and Japan experienced a rather significant decrease in investment. Despite this, we’re still seeing a demand for skilled professionals.
Although investment in certain regions has decreased, Keegan Kruger, wind analyst at BNEF, believes it won’t be long until the market stabilises. He sees this happening by 2020 thanks to new investments in offshore windfarms, particularly in the UK.
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) have released a report on the topic. They believe that by the same year, current renewable energy technologies will fall to within the same cost range as fossil fuels. This will mean that moving to renewable energy won’t just be an environmentally friendly one; it will also be an economical one.
What does this mean for oil and gas?
In BP’s 2017 Energy Outlook report, they broke down the market into the various energy sources, with the following predictions being made for 2035:
- Oil will experience a slow decline but will still hold the biggest share
- Coal will experience a slow, steady decline
- Gas will experience growth, overtaking coal as the second largest share
- Hydro will be relatively consistent, not experiencing any growth or decline
- Nuclear will be relatively consistent, not experiencing any growth or decline
- Renewables will experience rapid growth, overtaking hydro and nuclear.
The Energy Collective believes oil and gas in the US is set to match Saudi Arabia and Russia. However, as this isn’t a sustainable source, the country will only be seen as competition in the short-term. This does mean we could start to see a rapid increase in the number of oil and gas jobs available in the US.
According to the Journal of Petroleum Technology (JPT), “acquisitions in the oil and gas industry appear ready to increase in 2018 and shift from survival strategies toward growth objectives.” Again, this supports the expectation that we will start to see more jobs within the oil and gas industry.
The future of the global energy market
Towards the end of 2017 Shell acquired NewMotion, an organisation that sets up electric vehicle charging points throughout Europe. This is just one example of a company renowned for their work in the oil and gas industry who are taking steps to diversify.
Eurostar are also a great example of a company that’s creating demand for alternative energy sources. They recently revealed that, by 2030, they aim to power all of their rain services using green energy.
We predict we’ll see more of this behaviour in the next few years, as companies strive to meet the growing desire for change. With further acquisitions expected as well as the growth of certain sources in regions, the future of the global energy market looks very exciting. There will more opportunity for those within the industry – whether that’s those looking for a job, or those wanting to hire the best professionals.
We’re passionate about connecting the right talent with the right opportunity in the diversified energy industry. So, whatever your needs, contact us today and discover how we can help. All you have to do is click here to contact us.
