IEA urges 'emergency measures' to cut oil use over supply fears

[PARIS] The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Friday (Mar 18) urged governments to implement immediate measures to cut global oil consumption within months following supply fears stemming from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The 10 proposals put forward in a report, including increasing working from home and reducing speed limits, could cut oil consumption among advanced economies "by 2.7 million barrels a day within the next 4 months", the IEA said.

The outbreak of war in Ukraine has sent prices for the fuel up sharply and led to major economies, such as the United States and Canada, sanctioning Russia by banning imports of oil.

With the threat that supplies of Russian oil could be cut even more, "there is a real risk that markets tighten further and oil prices escalate significantly in the coming months" as the world enters its peak demand season, the IEA said.

Increases in supply of the crucial commodity "would not be able to ease the current strains" after the "disappointing outcome" of a recent meeting of Opec+, the Saudi- and Russian-led alliance of oil-producing nations, the report concluded.

As an alternative, demand could be cut amongst the world's advanced economies, which represent "around 45 per cent of global oil demand", the IEA said.

The measures, put forward together with the French government, could reduce consumption among those countries by 2.7 million barrels a day, while these currently consume between 44 and 45 million barrels a day, according to IEA estimates.

The 10-point plan, which could be implemented by governments, is targeted largely at transport, which represents the "majority of oil demand".

The proposals include: reducing speed limits, working from home 3 days a week, car-free Sundays, cheaper public transport and greater use of long-distance trains over planes. AFP