1.3 The Paradox of Energy Security and Sustainability
15
7. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) comprise Algeria,
Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.
Securing resources (mainly coal, gas, and oil) for generation of electricity and
for transportation during energy stress periods was the top priority for most of the
energy-deficit nations including India (Figs. 1.6 and 1.7). In order to keep the cost
within affordable limits, most of the countries started exploiting their own resources
first. For example, the oil embargo by OPEC in 1973 and Iranian revolution in 1979
shot up coal production in developing countries (Fig. 1.8) which increased by 7.6%
annually between 1973 and 1976 as compared with 3% per year in industrialized
countries. More than 90% of the increased coal production was from countries with
large and established coal industries, such as India, the Republic of Korea, Turkey,
Yugoslavia (now Serbia and Croatia), and Vietnam. Similarly, a few countries from
the underdeveloped and developing world including Argentina, China, and India
started using nuclear power for energy generation while others such as Pakistan,
Brazil, Iran, and Mexico, joined the club subsequently. Besides, coal, oil, and nuclear
energy, countries with enough financial and natural resources started constructing
hydroelectric plants. Since the gestation period of hydro plants is 5–10 years, the
focus continued to be on coal and oil supply.
The decades of 1970s and 1980s depended on the following factors for energy
security:
1. Availability of resources within the country or from outside, in turn, depended
on fluctuations in the demand and supply, economic growth, changes in prices
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
10000
India
China
Brazil
UK
Germany
Canada
USA
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1965
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1988
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1990
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1997
Fig. 1.6 Three decades of energy growth. Source WDR (1979, World Bank 1979); WDR (1990,
World Bank 1990) and WDR (2000, World Bank 2000)
15
7. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) comprise Algeria,
Ecuador, Gabon, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.
Securing resources (mainly coal, gas, and oil) for generation of electricity and
for transportation during energy stress periods was the top priority for most of the
energy-deficit nations including India (Figs. 1.6 and 1.7). In order to keep the cost
within affordable limits, most of the countries started exploiting their own resources
first. For example, the oil embargo by OPEC in 1973 and Iranian revolution in 1979
shot up coal production in developing countries (Fig. 1.8) which increased by 7.6%
annually between 1973 and 1976 as compared with 3% per year in industrialized
countries. More than 90% of the increased coal production was from countries with
large and established coal industries, such as India, the Republic of Korea, Turkey,
Yugoslavia (now Serbia and Croatia), and Vietnam. Similarly, a few countries from
the underdeveloped and developing world including Argentina, China, and India
started using nuclear power for energy generation while others such as Pakistan,
Brazil, Iran, and Mexico, joined the club subsequently. Besides, coal, oil, and nuclear
energy, countries with enough financial and natural resources started constructing
hydroelectric plants. Since the gestation period of hydro plants is 5–10 years, the
focus continued to be on coal and oil supply.
The decades of 1970s and 1980s depended on the following factors for energy
security:
1. Availability of resources within the country or from outside, in turn, depended
on fluctuations in the demand and supply, economic growth, changes in prices
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
10000
India
China
Brazil
UK
Germany
Canada
USA
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1965
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1988
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1990
Per capita energy consumpƟon (KgOE) 1997
Fig. 1.6 Three decades of energy growth. Source WDR (1979, World Bank 1979); WDR (1990,
World Bank 1990) and WDR (2000, World Bank 2000)