KUWAIT: Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) Chief Executive Officer Sheikh Nawaf Saud Al-Sabah confirmed on Thursday the company’s commitment to providing its customers in global markets with safe supplies of crude oil and environmentally friendly oil derivatives. This was stated in an opening speech delivered by Sheikh Nawaf Al-Sabah during the fourth conference in the field of energy transformation, organized by the research and technology department at the corporation in cooperation with the Japanese Cooperation Center for Petroleum and Sustainable Energy (JCPSE).

Al-Sabah praised the joint bilateral relations and mutual cooperation between Kuwait and Japan, praising the continuous support from the Embassy of Japan in Kuwait and the Japan Cooperation Center in this regard. It is reported that the foundation was launched in October with its Energy Transformation Strategy 2050, stressing that it is preparing a roadmap for Kuwait towards a sustainable future.

He explained that the strategy aims to significantly reduce emissions, harness advanced technologies to produce cleaner oil derivatives, and use renewable sources to power the operations of the corporation and its subsidiaries. He pointed out that the energy transition strategy comes in line with the commitment of Kuwait to international agreements related to climate change.

For his part, Japan’s Ambassador to Kuwait, Yasunari Morino, in a speech at the conference, expressed the embassy’s readiness to provide support and overcome obstacles to Japanese companies in order to strengthen relations between the two countries. The CEO of the Center praised Japanese Petroleum and Sustainable Energy Cooperation Tsuyoshi Nakai in his speech on the relations between his country and Kuwait in general and the relations between the Center and the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation in particular.

The conference discussed the actual measures to achieve the climate goals through strategic energy transformation initiatives for Kuwait in general and for the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and its subsidiaries in particular, in addition to the exchange of scientific, technical, and economic experiences in this field with Japan. The speakers also discussed the future energy challenges facing the states of Kuwait and Japan related to climate action and the outcomes of the conference of the parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28).

The conference included a panel discussion between the managing director of planning and finance at KPC Badr Al-Attar and the CEO of the Japan Petroleum and Sustainable Energy Cooperation Center, during which they discussed the energy transformation initiatives, their roadmap, and the challenges facing the implementation of these initiatives. The conference was attended by a group of leaders of the corporation, subsidiaries, technical experts from the Kuwaiti oil sector, local, regional, and international institutions, government agencies, and senior executives from the states of Kuwait and Japan. — KUNA