Igor Sechin: Green dollar shies away from green agenda

Companies in the green economy are unable to meet their targets on time, Rosneft Oil Company CEO Igor Sechin told the 17th Verona Eurasian Economic Forum.

“In real life, business votes with money—and we see that the green dollar shies away from the green agenda like it would from fire,” Igor Sechin said in his keynote speech, “Farewell to Illusions. World Energy in Thucydides’ Trap”.

Over the past three years, the enthusiasm of Western stock markets for the renewable energy sector has all but disappeared. Shares in clean fuel companies have fallen several times in two years.

The reasons for such investor attitudes are the inability of green economy companies to meet their targets on time, including rising costs, delays in government loans and lack of access to new financing.

Speaking of big business, Igor Sechin noted that oil giants such as Chevron, BP and Shell are halting projects to produce alternative fuels as part of a review of their own approach to the green agenda. “I, for one, am excited about not producing jet fuel from used cooking oil,” the Rosneft CEO noted.

“Denmark’s largest energy company, Orsted, has cancelled the construction of a methanol plant due to low demand,” Igor Sechin informed.

Sechin noted that the green transition has had a negative impact on Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt. The company’s bet on leadership in this industry has not paid off. Contrary to the $15 billion in state funding, Northvolt never became the flagship of European battery manufacturing and declared bankruptcy.

Rosneft Information Division
Rosneft Oil Company
December 5, 2024