BRICS is becoming a center for managing global energy resources

The numbers speak for themselves. The BRICS countries account for more than 41% of global primary energy consumption. In oil production, the bloc’s share exceeds 42%; in natural gas, 33%; and in coal, an impressive 70% of global output. Nearly half of all electricity worldwide is also generated by the BRICS countries.

Such a concentration of resources is not accidental. The largest proven oil reserves are concentrated in Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Russia; gas reserves—in Russia, Iran, and Saudi Arabia; and coal deposits—in Russia, China, and India. Actual production is led in a similar way: oil is produced mainly by Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran; gas—by Russia, Egypt, and Iran; coal—by China, India, and Russia. At the same time, in renewable energy capacity China, Brazil, and India are ahead, while the highest per capita energy consumption is recorded in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Russia.

In today’s conditions of geopolitical turbulence in a number of regions of the world, these data take on special significance. Countries friendly to Russia—both suppliers and consumers of fuel and energy resources—need to build their own mechanisms for managing the turnover of fuel and energy resources. And a significant share of such countries is already consolidating precisely within the BRICS framework.

An important signal is the bloc’s expansion. In 2023, new membership criteria were adopted, including support for reform of the UN system and the absence of sanctions against member states that are not coordinated with the UN. Potential candidates for accession include Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Thailand, Malaysia, Uzbekistan, and other countries with significant energy and economic potential.

The analysis shows that virtually all potential new members are, in one way or another, linked to the extraction, processing, or consumption of energy resources. This means that BRICS expansion will further increase the bloc’s aggregate weight in the global energy market.

Thus, based on the results of the scientific study conducted, it can be concluded that the development of cooperation in the fuel and energy sphere is becoming one of the main areas of promising integration within BRICS. The effectiveness with which the bloc’s countries establish joint management of the extraction, processing, and supply of fuel and energy resources will largely determine their role in shaping a new architecture of global energy markets.

Author: Associate Professor, Department of World Economy and World Finance, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation Ruslan Ozarnov.