BAKU, Azerbaijan, Nov.19
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
It is expected that upstream investment in 2021 to remain at the same levels of 2020, which may cause a shortage of natural gas supply due to the lack of investment in the upcoming years, Trend reports with reference to the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF).
For 2021, it is forecasted that global production will recover to the 2019 production level and will continue to grow in 2022, according to the GECF report.
“Natural gas production in 2020 was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Upstream activities declined significantly across the globe due to weak demand for natural gas and low oil and gas prices in global markets. As a result, global natural gas production dropped by 3 percent in 2020 compared to the 2019 level. CIS and North America experienced the highest level of decline among the regions,” the report says.
The GECF analysts note that among the countries, the US experienced the highest level of decline.
“Meanwhile, natural gas production in China, Iran and Azerbaijan increased in 2020. Some oil and gas companies reported huge losses in 2020 and some others filed for bankruptcy. By recovering from the negative impacts of COVID-19 pandemic, oil and gas companies are trying to stabilize their cash flows and balance their financial statements rather than invest in new development projects,” the organization said.
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