The International Energy Agency (IEA) has dismissed the usefulness of fossil fuels for the umpteenth time. Fatih Birol, the IEA’s Executive Director, stated that the present energy crisis and record gasoline prices should not be used as an excuse to increase the world’s reliance on fossil fuels.

Speaking at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland, Birol said: “We need fossil fuels in the short term, but let’s not lock in our future by using the current situation as an excuse to justify some of the investments being done. Time-wise, it doesn’t work, and morally in my view, it doesn’t work as well.”

Following the spike in energy prices and huge uncertainty in the global oil market following Russia’s war with Ukraine, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and its member countries, including the United States, have announced two strategic petroleum reserve releases to try to tame soaring oil and gasoline prices and offset the gap that unwanted Russian oil would leave due to the sanctions.

Despite admitting that more fossil fuels are needed in the short term, the IEA continues to advocate for a more rapid energy transition. The International Energy Agency (IEA) released a new study last weekend that indicated that the global oil and gas business will earn $4 trillion in 2022, more than twice its five-year average.

“The best way to protect people from future price shocks is to invest as much as possible of this in an accelerated & secure clean energy transition,” the IEA’s executive director said.

Last year, the Paris-based agency released a report claiming that the world would not require any additional investments in new oil and gas projects to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.