War in the Middle East could cause an energy crisis worse than the 1970s crisis and the initial impacts of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 combined.
This was the warning of Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, in his comments to Australian media during a press event in Canberra.
“Many of us remember the two oil crises one after the other in the 1970s… back then, in each of the crises, the world lost about five million barrels of oil per day, and both together, 10 million barrels per day,” Birol said. “Today we are losing 11 million barrels per day, more than two major oil crises combined.”
He added that no country "will be immune" to the energy consequences of the crisis, as shipments of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passing through the vital Strait of Hormuz remain blocked by the Iranian blockade.