IEA Warns of Unprecedented Global Energy Security Threat

(MENAFN) The Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol, cautioned on Thursday that the planet is currently confronting the most serious energy security danger in recorded history. He attributed this crisis to the ongoing war involving Iran and the sustained shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, both of which are heavily interfering with worldwide energy transportation and supply chains.

“We are facing the biggest energy security threat in history,” Birol stated during an interview with CNBC at the CONVERGE LIVE gathering in Singapore.

He noted that the global market has already experienced a reduction of around 13 million barrels per day in oil availability, alongside significant disturbances affecting essential raw materials and commodities crucial to the energy sector and broader economy.

Birol also reaffirmed previous alerts that the Iran conflict, combined with the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz, could potentially spark the most extensive energy crisis ever recorded. He emphasized the strategic importance of this maritime passage in facilitating global crude oil transportation.

Prior to the conflict, approximately 20 million barrels of oil and refined petroleum products moved through the strait each day. However, Birol explained that the route is now effectively operating under what he described as a “double-blockade,” where neither Iran nor the United States permits shipping traffic to pass through the channel.

The International Energy Agency has repeatedly classified the Strait of Hormuz as one of the most vital oil transit chokepoints in the world. It has further cautioned that any prolonged closure could slow global economic expansion, intensify inflationary pressures, and compel countries to impose energy usage restrictions.

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