Global energy crisis could push countries towards renewables ‘within months,’ says IEA head

As the Middle East war fuels what the International Energy Agency (IEA) executive director Fatih Birol described as the world’s worst energy crisis, he said countries will “very soon” turn to renewables, such as solar and wind power, “within a few months” as they can be installed quickly.

This, he said, is expected to speed up the development of renewables, nuclear energy and electric vehicles, AFP reported.

Mr Birol was responding to an interview with French conservative Le Figaro newspaper on Tuesday (April 7), saying the current oil and ‌gas crisis, triggered by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, is “more serious” than those of 1973, 1979, and 2022 combined.

Even so, Mr Birol urged countries to conserve energy in the near term, warning that “if the strait does indeed remain closed throughout April, we will lose twice as much crude oil and refined products as we did in March.”

He also warned that developing nations will be hit the hardest by higher oil and gas prices, higher food prices and accelerated inflation, as reported by The Guardian.

In the latest updates on the US‑Iran negotiations, President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social, “Based on conversations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, of Pakistan, and wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran, and subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks. This will be a double-sided CEASEFIRE!” 

“We received a 10-point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate. Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two-week period will allow the Agreement to be finalised and consummated,” he added.

Just last night, the US President posted: “A whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will. However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalised minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?” /TISG

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