Qatar’s August tourism witnesses 78% annual surge despite monthly dip  

Qatar’s August tourism witnesses 78% annual surge despite monthly dip  

RIYADH: The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries on Monday predicted that crude demand would continue to grow in the next two decades.

Raising its global oil demand forecasts for the medium and long term, OPEC said $14 trillion of investment is needed to meet this demand even as renewable fuel use grows and more electric cars take to the road.

In its 2023 annual report, the oil producers’ group forecasts demand for crude to reach 116 million barrels per day by 2045 under its main scenario, a 16.5 percent increase from the 99.4 million bpd in 2022.

That is an increase of 6 million bpd from its estimate last year.

Oil demand has “the potential to be even higher,” said OPEC Secretary-General Haitham Al-Ghais.

“Recent developments have led the OPEC team to reassess just what each energy can deliver, with a focus on pragmatic and realistic options and solutions,” he wrote in the foreword to the report.

“Calls to stop investments in new oil projects are misguided and could lead to energy and economic chaos,” he added.

The OPEC chief said: “What is clear is that the world will continue to need more energy in the decades to come.”

According to OPEC, oil demand will be driven