27-06-2025
Energy Without Illusions: Igor Sechin on the New Landscape of Global Energy
The energy of the future, the challenges of the digital revolution, and the role of nuclear power were the central themes of Igor Sechin's address at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2025. The CEO of Rosneft Oil Company, head of one of Russia's largest companies, denounced the 'net-zero' concept as an energy regression, underscored the special importance of electricity in the age of AI, predicted that China would emerge as the new global energy leader, and highlighted Russia's potential to develop a balanced new-energy mix.
China: From Consumer to Exporter
In his report, 'An Odyssey of the World Economy in Search of the Golden Fleece: The New Landscape of Global Energy,' Igor Sechin placed particular emphasis on China's role in tomorrow's energy sector. According to him, the PRC is no longer merely safeguarding its own energy security; it is confidently moving toward a new status – that of a net energy exporter.
These successes, he noted, stem from a ba – lanced strategy rather than dogmatic adherence to trends. China does not bet exclusively on renewable energy sources (RES); instead, it advances multiple vectors at once – boosting coal production while simultaneously retaining leadership in solar and wind generation. Such an approach avoids lowering energy-flow density and prevents degradation of power systems.
Sechin argued that talk of declining global demand for energy resources lacks foundation. On the contrary, several structural factors will only spur growth in worldwide energy consumption – chief among them the need to guarantee energy security, widening fiscal deficits and public debt, demographic trends, and large-scale digitalization.
The digital revolution, according to Sechin, must become a foundation for productivity growth. He emphasized the decisive role of artificial intelligence and big data in reshaping the global energy landscape. Citing research from Goldman Sachs, he stated that large-scale adoption of advanced technologies could increase labor productivity by 1,5 percentage points in developed countries and by 1 percentage point in developing countries over the next decade.
These challenges – not formal climate targets detached from reality – must, in his view, shape the energy strategies of the world's leading nations.
Electricity – the New Oil
Sechin devoted special attention to electricity, dubbing it the 'new oil' of the twenty-first century. The rise of artificial intelligence, the proliferation of data centers, and the accelerated rollout of electric transport are turning electricity into the key resource of the new technological order.
Yet, he stressed, for electricity to truly drive development, it is not enough simply to expand generation; the quality and resilience of power systems must be improved.
Another source to which the Rosneft chief assigned a pivotal role in the future energy balance is nuclear power. In a world where renewables still cannot deliver the required energy-flow density and hydrocarbons face relentless pressure from environmental activists, nuclear energy offers a way to maintain grid stability.
He noted that over the past 15 years, global electricity consumption has grown at an accelerated pace. And in the next 25 years, according to IEA projections, global electricity generation is expected to double. Moreover, Sechin projected that as early as 2025, global investment in the electric power sector will exceed investment in fossil fuels by 50 percent.
Russia, Sechin reminded the audience, is a leading nation in this field. The country now offers competitive, technologically advanced civil-nuclear solutions, including within the framework of international projects.
Energy Synthesis, Not Energy Substitution
Addressing the 'energy transition,' Sechin rejected the idea of rigidly replacing one source with another. Instead, he proposed a model of synthesis – combining traditional and alternative energy sources so that new technologies complement and reinforce the existing system rather than displacing it. This approach, he argued, avoids technological disruptions while ensuring economic efficiency and energy security.
A key takeaway from Sechin's speech was his criticism of the net-zero doctrine. Abruptly abandoning traditional energy sources for climate goals, he warned, threatens the world with an energy regression.
Without a comprehensive transformation of the entire energy infrastructure, integrating renewables will lead not to sustainable development but to reduced accessibility and reliability of energy supplies, he contended. Russia, meanwhile, can offer the world a more balanced and pragmatic development model in this arena.
Sechin also addressed Europe's policy toward Russian energy exports. He recalled that the European Union continues to push for a lower price cap on Russian oil — down to $45 per barrel. 'In my view, the real goal is to increase the efficiency of Europe's purchases from Russia, rather than to reduce the revenue of the Russian budget, as publicly declared', — Sechin argued.
The numbers, he noted, support this interpretation: according to Western experts, since early 2023, Europe has purchased over 20 billion euros worth of Russian oil — making it the fourth-largest buyer by volume
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