SINGAPORE: Nuclear energy can offer countries an option to strengthen long-term energy security amid global supply disruptions, said International Energy Agency (IEA) executive director Dr Fatih Birol.
Described as a source of safe, domestically generated and reliable baseload electricity, he said interest in nuclear power has increased amid the current energy crisis as countries reassess their energy strategies and seek to reduce reliance on external energy supplies.
"The appetite for nuclear power has now increased as a result of the current crisis, because nuclear is a safe energy source.
"Therefore, reliance on other countries is less, and it is baseload electricity, which is very much needed,” he told reporters on the sidelines of Singapore International Energy Week 2026 (SIEW 2026) here.
Birol said the energy crisis was partly driven by disruptions to supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil and gas shipments, warning that energy markets were unlikely to return to pre-war conditions for some time.
He said this after a surge in oil prices and disruptions to fuel supplies, which could continue to affect global energy markets, with oil prices approaching US$120 per barrel and diesel prices having doubled from pre-war levels.
"What worries me is that diesel is very important for the global economy, and it is also very important for the agriculture sector, as many countries are entering the planting season,” he said.
Birol said high diesel prices and disrupted fertiliser supplies could affect food prices in the coming months.
He added the impact of the crisis should not be assessed solely through crude oil prices, as the availability and cost of refined petroleum products were also important.
"We should not only be focused on crude oil prices. We use refineries, and today we are seeing significant challenges in refined products, starting with diesel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), gasoil and jet fuel,” he said.
Meanwhile, on nuclear energy development, Birol said a country planning to develop it needed to choose a partner carefully for a project with long-term implications.
"The country you are going to choose as your nuclear partner, you will live with this country almost 100 years because once you get ‘married’, you cannot ‘divorce’.
"Secondly, the country needs to make sure that it gets the best technology to build the nuclear industry. And thirdly, cost should be competitive,” he said.
Birol emphasised that countries needed to reassess their energy strategies, partnerships, and fuel and technology choices as uncertainty in global energy markets persists. - Bernama
