World energy demand will be up by more than 50% by 2030 but adequate oil reserves, conservation and new methods of recovery will enable supply to keep up with demand, OPEC reported in its "World Look Outlook for 2008." OPEC said the weak dollar and market speculators were partly to blame for high prices. It also said decades of low prices led to under-investment, leaving the industry ill-prepared to meet increased demand for crude. "Today, what is apparent is that oil supply and demand fundamentals are healthy," reported OPEC Secretary-General Abdalla Salem El-Badri. "There is, and has been, more than enough supply to meet demand, and oil stocks in major consuming countries are at comfortable levels. This should point away from the direction of current price levels." Oil demand will rise by 29 million barrels a day from 2006 through 2030, reaching a daily 113 million barrels a day, according to the report. This would be 4 million barrels a day less than OPEC's prediction last year. OPEC expects oil consumption this year to amount to an average of 86.9 million barrels per day.
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