During a conference on access to civil nuclear energy in Paris IEA Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka stressed safety and non-proliferation as two key premises for global expansion of nuclear power. He said that “for the sake of climate change mitigation, nuclear (development) is necessary” but that full safety and non-proliferation were “minimum requirements”. The development of nuclear energy was also facing some major difficulties such as public acceptance and human resources, he said and added that “there are not enough nuclear technicians and engineers”.

Addressing a two-day oil market forum in Tokyo, organised jointly by the IEA and the Institute of Energy Economics Japan, IEA Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka said “With proliferating uncertainty, the [oil] market could easily become again more volatile once economic growth returns and the market potentially tightens”. Uncertainty about the economic recovery and a lack of clarity among policy makers to mitigate CO2 emissions made it however “very difficult to map out a clear and certain path for the market”. Mr. Tanaka called for policy makers to “step up to the plate” as these uncertainties could be lowered with “clearer internationally agreed policies that ensure plentiful supply of sustainable and secure energy”.

Reporting on the new IEA study Sustainable Production of Second-Generation Biofuels, the newspaper highlights that world production of biofuels could more than double by 2030 without competing with food production, if 2nd generation biofuels produced from agricultural- and forestry residues were used. It quotes IEA Director of Energy Markets and Security Didier Houssin as saying that a switch to new and efficient technologies is needed to avoid the problems related to first-generation biofuels, which are based on grains and other agricultural commodities and are increasingly questioned due to low profitability and negative impact on global food prices.

Speaking at the Russia Forum 2010 in Moscow about projected natural gas demand over the next five years, IEA Chief Economist Fatih Birol said “I’m afraid I don’t have any good news for Russia. I see gas overproduction worldwide through 2015.” He added that market dynamics “will depend on global economic growth rates, the success of energy efficiency projects in Europe, and the extent to which the USA shale gas production experience is applicable in other countries, including central Europe.”

Speaking about the investment needed to avoid dangerous climate change, IEA industry expert Cecilia Tam said, “there is a big funding gap”. Referring to an estimated USD 150 billion which was invested globally last year, she said “we need at least a doubling by 2015”. According to Tam, if over the next 20 years the world is to boost renewable power, build greener buildings and roll out more fuel-scrimping cars including hybrid and electric models, it must invest more than an additional USD 500 billion annually.

At a World Economic Forum (Davos) discussion of the impact of the Copenhagen outcome on business, IEA Chief Economist Fatih Birol said “there still is no clear signal for the energy sector after Copenhagen, and that means that the existing uncertainty on energy sector investments continues, particularly in the developing world.” He added that “investors still have incentives to build the kind of conventional coal-fired plants that lock in significant amounts of carbon emissions for many years to come.”

At a coal seminar in Muscat/Oman, IEA coal analyst Brian Ricketts spoke about the global perspective for coal. He underlined the inexorable growth of coal demand in power generation, particularly in China which relies on the fuel for 81 per cent of its electricity and two-thirds of its energy demand. He stressed that dealing with the rise in CO2 emissions associated with growing coal use was an absolute necessity.

Commenting on Abu Dhabi’s initiative to become a centre of innovation in the renewable energy sector, IEA Deputy Executive Director Richard Jones welcomed the initiative as timely. “Renewables are of course a big part of the current mix,” he said and added "they are going to be an even bigger part in the future.”

Speaking at a webcast event designed to promote a dialogue about energy efficiency at the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen, the Head of the IEA Energy Efficiency Unit Nigel Jollands said "When we are dealing with climate change issues, time is not on our side.” Constructions such as houses and roads built today would still exist and be in place in 2030, he explained. “We're not going to be able to retrofit and rebuild all of our buildings. So the only strategy we've really got is to use energy efficiency. Energy efficiency essentially buys us time."

At seminar at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC, IEA Energy and Environment Analyst Barbara Buchner gave a positive assessment of the EU ETS in the 2005-2007 pilot phase, saying it had led to an emissions reduction of about 210 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, according to IEA analysis.

Speaking on the margins of a sustainable energy conference in Singapore, IEA Energy Efficiency and Environment Division head Rick Bradley said that efforts to use new energy technologies are hampered by businesses’ reluctance to toss out their expensive and energy-inefficient equipment. That is why boosting energy efficiency is still the best way to cut carbon emissions before 2030, he said, adding “In the near term, the biggest reductions will come from energy efficiency.”

Urging Japan to advance energy cooperation with neighboring Asian countries as a way of building an East Asian community, IEA Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka said, “With China and (South) Korea, I think certainly to have a wider or larger electricity market makes sense for East Asia.” He added that the region should learn from a European approach of creating “one big single energy market.”

Speaking at the “Oil and Gas of Turkmenistan-2009" conference in Ashgabat, IEA Deputy Executive Director Richard Jones said the Agency’s member countries, most of which are Western European nations, were keen to secure Turkmen supplies. "Gas from the Caspian region in general and Turkmenistan in particular… will be very much needed in Europe". The conference focused on the prospects for diversification of Turkmenistan’s export markets, including the possibility for Turkmenistan to supply gas to the EU-backed Nabucco pipeline project.

The IEA November Oil Market Report warned that the recent spike in oil prices could derail the global economic recovery. David Fyfe, head of the IEA Oil Industry and Markets Division, said “If prices keep rebounding, there’s a risk to the global economy as a whole, even to some of those economies in the Far East and even the Middle East.”

At the launch of the IEA World Energy Outlook 2009 in London, IEA Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka emphasised the importance of reaching a global agreement at the UN Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen in December. Mr. Tanaka said “A deal at Copenhagen is vital. Governments must reach clear agreements to improve efficiency and develop alternative forms of energy…”

Commenting on technology transfer for advancing sustainable energy in developing countries - the likely focus of the debate at the climate conference in Copenhagen in December and at the World Future Energy Summit (in January 2010) - IEA Deputy Executive Director Richard Jones is quoted as saying: “To meet growing global energy demand, we need to make sure that we have adequate and sustainable energy supplies. We will need all sources, but our big challenge will be minimising the environmental impact from their production and use. Development and deployment of low-carbon technologies will be central to this effort.” (In recognition of this, IEA energy ministers at their meeting on 14-15 October gave a green light to the Agency to continue developing ideas for a low-carbon energy technology platform which will assist IEA partner countries in developing their own energy technology plans.)

The new IEA publication, Chile Energy Policy Review 2009, commended Chile’s push to develop renewable resources, but said the country may not be moving fast enough. IEA Programme Manager for Latin America Ghislaine Kieffer said that over 12 gigawatts of non-conventional, renewable capacity could be developed with current technology, adding that some estimates show a much higher potential.

Presenting the new report Implementing Energy Efficiency Policies: Are IEA Member Countries on Track? at the IEA Ministerial meeting in Paris, Senior Energy Analyst Nigel Jollands called for “urgent” steps to enhance the performance among member countries. The study analyses to what degree IEA member countries have implemented the Agency’s 25 energy efficiency recommendations to the G8 which – if implemented globally - could reduce carbon emissions by 8.2 gigatonnes per year by 2030. “We are only in second gear”, said Jollands. “There is a hell of a lot more potential to draw from out there.''

Launching the new IEA Scoreboard 2009 at the International Energy Agency’s Ministerial meeting, the Head of the IEA Statistics Division Jean-Yves Garnier said energy efficiency was one of the key issues to reduce energy consumption and curb greenhouse gas emissions. He announced the International Energy Agency would ask its member countries to provide annual information about the efficiency of their energy use.

Briefing reporters at the IEA Ministerial in Paris, the Agency’s Chief Economist Fatih Birol said that a peak in fossil fuel demand will depend on the agreement reached at the Copenhagen climate change summit. “If we say that the 450 ppm scenario works out, fossil fuel demand altogether will peak around 2020,” said Dr. Birol, referring to a target to stabilise the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at 450 parts per million of CO2 equivalent.