A panel discussion at the IATA Congress 2026 in Rio de Janeiro explored long term energy security shifts and the potential for innovation driven by the current disruptions. Eleanor Budds of S&P shared that there are long term longer term impacts in terms of energy security so energy security came back to the table you know global energy market everything trade is global everything is fine but Russia Ukraine brought energy security particularly for Europe really back to the forefront and this has also just kind of entrenched that idea that countries have to be more energy independent and not rely on a global trade system as much as we have been doing.
Richard Quest asked whether that meant working together takes second place to putting me first. Eleanor Budds of S&P shared that it depends on the region right because some countries that will be their thought China US that will probably be the way that the direction of thinking and the EU is in that way of thinking. Matt Kaminski shared that you know the whole saying in US politics never waste a good crisis and from an energy point of view maybe you should not send one fifth of your energy needs through one little narrow body of water and should look at other ways to get this stuff out of the Middle East, noting developments such as Joby creating electric sort of engines and a company called Otter which has built this private airplane with no windows and uses sustainable aviation fuel to cut down fuel costs by like seventy per cent or something so crises are painful but in human history usually if people are innovative and adjust quickly you end up in a better place than you were before the crisis.
When asked if the situation today is that much worse than before, Eleanor Budds of S&P shared that when the IEA does its kind of energy global energy security scenario you know what is the worst thing that could possibly hit the global energy system it is the closure of the Strait of Hormuz that is what they scenario work through in terms of modelling the worst possible scenario. Marie Owens Thomsen shared that now is the time this is a great opportunity and everybody who has lived through these days all of us together would be so fed up with being dependent on this monopoly energy source it is like why do we allow that dependency and therefore the conclusion is obviously that we need to make more different types of energy for all the users whether they use fuel or whatever energy product they use. Nick Allan shared that absolutely not we have the world has been in much darker places than it is at the moment and we are probably healthier and more prosperous as a planet than we have been for a long time but the risks are elevated and the concern would be do we make use of this crisis or does it pass or does it carry on too long but absolutely no the world has been in worse times than this.
Matt Kaminski shared in his final words that especially in this room thinking about this industry it seems to him that this industry actually has not been as forward leaning with change as other industries you see and if you learn from something from Elon Musk is that you identify opportunities that seem crazy and then you try and seize them and he has brought about that half of us now drive electric cars and made it possible to send rockets into space at a fraction of the cost so again that spirit is the one that has to animate especially the business community going forward.
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