Iraq and Saudi Arabia are among the countries most vulnerable to climate change

 
12/16/2021

Economy News _ Baghdad

Large amounts of oil and gas reserves in the world are at risk due to rising waves, storms, floods, and a sharp rise in temperatures caused by climate change, Verisk Maplecroft said today, Thursday.

It added that about 600 billion barrels, or 40 percent of the world's recoverable oil and gas reserves, may be affected by severe weather, and among the countries most exposed to risks are Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Nigeria, who are major producers of crude.

The sector has been affected by climate change this year, when freezing weather hit the main oil, gas and refining hub on the southern US Gulf Coast, causing long outages and curtailing production, according to Reuters.

"Events like these will become more frequent and intense, which creates bigger shocks to the sector," said Rory Claesby, environmental analyst at the company.

About 10% of the world's extractable commercial reserves are located in areas classified by the consulting firm as "high risk", while about a third are located in areas considered "high risk".

Researchers at the company pointed out that in Saudi Arabia, extreme heat, water shortages and dust storms may be the "weak point" for the kingdom, the world's largest oil exporter.

They said that the risks in Nigeria, the second largest exporter of crude in Africa, where reserves are concentrated around the Niger Delta region, are drought and floods.

The company's report says that companies with reserves in locations highly vulnerable to climate change will face more devastating events and possibly higher extraction costs. Production may have to be halted and the plant secured to allow storms to pass.

It also expects the risk of accidents to increase in environmentally sensitive sites where pipelines are exposed to more extreme weather events that they may not have been designed to withstand.

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