Positive energy, pragmatic actions key to drive global growth: Al Jaber

Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, Adnoc Managing Director and Group CEO, Chairman of Masdar and Executive Chairman of XRG, said that positive energy and pragmatic actions were needed to drive global growth and power the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

Speaking at CERAWeek in Houston, Texas, Dr Al Jaber called for durable, stable policies to meet the growing demand for energy. “The world is finally waking up to the fact that energy is the solution. Energy is the beating heart of economies, a key driver of prosperity and is fundamental to every aspect of human development. If we want a pro-growth world, we need pragmatic actions and policies that are pro-growth, pro-investment, pro-energy and pro-people.”

Dr Al Jaber said that every energy option was needed and an ‘and-and’ approach that embraces diverse energy options was required to meet the rapid growth in worldwide demand. “We know that by 2035, there will be almost 9 billion people on this planet. In line with this growth, oil demand will increase from 103 to at least 109 million barrels per day. LNG and chemicals will expand by over 40 per cent and total electricity demand will surge from 9,000GW to 15,000GW, which is a staggering 70 per cent increase. We will need more LNG, more low-carbon oil, more nuclear and more commercially-viable renewables to meet all this demand.”

Dr Al Jaber explained how the UAE’s leadership has pursued a pragmatic ‘and-and’ approach, extending its energy leadership in oil and gas to renewables, nuclear, chemicals and low-carbon energies.

“The UAE has built on 7 decades of experience in oil and gas to produce the world’s least carbon-intensive barrels. We have diversified into new energies, investing in 51GW of commercially-viable renewable energy globally through Masdar. We have also added nuclear to our energy mix, with four reactors now generating 5.6GW of electricity and providing 25 per cent of the UAE’s power needs.”

Noting how the UAE injected energy realism into the climate process as host of COP28, Dr Al Jaber said that the UAE Consensus delivered the most realistic breakthrough in years. “The UAE Consensus succeeded because it brought everyone to the table, and it resulted in a practical approach that followed market realities more than unrealistic mandates. The agreement cemented the reality that sustainable progress is simply not possible without access to reliable, affordable and secure energy.”

Dr Al Jaber went on to highlight how with energy, artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to reshape the world. “Applications like ChatGPT use 10 times as much energy as a simple Google search and are growing exponentially. By 2030, in the US alone, data centre power demand is expected to triple, accounting for more than 10 per cent of US electricity use. The fact is you cannot scale AI without access to energy. Simply put, the true cost of AI is not just in code, it’s in kilowatts. The race for AI supremacy is essentially an energy play.”

Dr Al Jaber noted that those with easy access to energy supply and infrastructure will have a clear advantage over those who don’t. “This is where we see huge opportunities for the UAE to further invest and deepen partnerships with the US across multiple sectors, including the energy-AI nexus. It is also where XRG, our newly launched transformational international energy investment company, can play a critical role.

“XRG is designed to meet the fast-growing energy needs of AI in an ‘and-and’ world. Without energy, AI is just potential. With it, AI has the potential to reshape the world.”

Dr Al Jaber went on to explain the benefits of AI at Adnoc. “We first applied AI to our operations 5 years ago. Today, we have integrated AI comprehensively across the value chain from the control room to the board room. We have created world class solutions specific to our needs through our home-grown AI company, AIQ. Over 200 AI use cases are currently being implemented across Adnoc’s operations, from exploration to refining to logistics and strategic decision making.

“Our flagship AI initiative, Energy to the Power of AI, is applying agentic AI at unprecedented scale for the first time. Using AI, we are speeding up our upstream seismic analysis from months to hours. We are increasing the accuracy of production forecasts by up to 90 per cent and we are on course to make Adnoc the most AI enabled energy company in the world.”

Highlighting the importance of turning positive energy into positive action, Dr Al Jaber invited global energy leaders to convene in Abu Dhabi for ADIPEC in November 2025. “Yesterday morning from this very stage, Secretary Wright said, we need more energy. I couldn’t agree more. In fact, we don’t just need more energy, we need more positive energy. So, I invite you to join me at ADIPEC 2025 in Abu Dhabi to turn positive energy into positive action.”