The International Energy Agency (IEA, or AIE in Romance languages) is a Paris-based intergovernmental organization established under the umbrella of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1974 in the wake of the oil crisis. The IEA was initially dedicated to responding to physical disruptions in the supply of oil, as well as serving as an information source on statistics about the international oil market and other energy sectors. The IEA acts as a policy advisor to its 28 member countries, but also works with many countries outside of its membership, especially China, India and Russia. The Agency's mandate has broadened to focus on the "3Es" of sound energy policy: energy security, economic development, and environmental protection. ^[1] The latter has focused on mitigating climate change.^[2] The IEA has a broad role in promoting alternate energy sources (including renewable energy), rational energy policies, and multinational energy technology co-operation.

IEA member countries are required to maintain total oil stock levels equivalent to at least 90 days of the previous year's net imports. At the end of July 2009, IEA member countries held a combined stockpile of almost 4.3 billion barrels of oil.

The Executive Director of the IEA is Nobuo Tanaka. The Deputy Executive Director is Richard Jones.

Contents 1 Intervention history 2 Member States 3 Energy efficiency 4 Renewable energy 5 Allegations of Inflated Production Estimates 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Intervention history

• In 1991 Gulf War.
• In 2005 the IEA released two million barrels a day for a month after Hurricane Katrina affected USA production.
• On August 29, 2008 the IEA announced that if Hurricane Gustav caused major damage to gulf oil and gas equipment, strategic reserves would be released. [1]

[edit] Member States

Only OECD member states can become members of the IEA. All OECD member states are members of the IEA, excluding Iceland and Mexico. There are 28 member states.

Current membership:
Australia  Austria  Belgium  Canada  Czech Republic  Denmark  Finland  France  Germany  Greece  Hungary  Ireland  Italy  Japan	South Korea  Luxembourg  Netherlands  New Zealand  Norway  Poland  Portugal  Slovakia  Spain  Sweden  Switzerland  Turkey  United Kingdom  United States

[edit] Energy efficiency

At the Heiligendamm Summit in June 2007, the G8 acknowledged an EU proposal for an international initiative on energy efficiency tabled in March 2007, and agreed to explore, together with the International Energy Agency, the most effective means to promote energy efficiency internationally. A year later, on 8 June 2008, the G8 countries, China, India, South Korea and the European Community decided to establish the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation, at the Energy Ministerial meeting hosted by Japan in the frame of the 2008 G8 Presidency, in Aomori. ^[3]

[edit] Renewable energy

Guy Pearse states that the IEA has consistently underestimated the potential for renewable energy alternatives.^[4]

The Energy Watch Group (EWG), a coalition of scientists and politicians which analyses official energy industry predictions, claims that the IEA has had an institutional bias towards traditional energy sources and has been using "misleading data" to undermine the case for renewable energy, such as wind and solar. A 2008 EWG report compares IEA projections about the growth of wind power capacity and finds that it has consistently underestimated the amount of energy the wind power industry can deliver.^[5]

For example, in 1998, the IEA predicted global wind electricity generation would total 47.4 GW by 2020, but EWG's report states that this level was reached by the end of 2004.^[6] The report also said that the IEA has not learnt the lesson of previous underestimates, and last year net additions of wind power globally were four times greater than the average IEA estimate from its 1995-2004 predictions.^[5]

Amid discontent from across the renewables sector at the IEA's performance as a global energy watchdog, the International Renewable Energy Agency was formed on January 26, 2009. The aim is to have the agency fully operational by 2010 with an initial annual budget of €25m.^[7]

[edit] Allegations of Inflated Production Estimates

The IEA has been criticized for allegedly inflating estimates of global oil reserves. Proponents of the Peak Oil hypothesis in particular have charged that the agency's published estimates are unrealistic and, in fact, they often have been subsequently revised downward. In November 2009, an unnamed "senior official" stated that the IEA consistently over-estimated global oil supply in response to pressure from the United States government.^[8]

[edit] See also

• SolarPACES
• IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme
• IEA Solar Heating & Cooling Implementing Agreement - Task 13 (Solar Low Energy Buildings)
• IEA-ECBCS Annex 48 : Heat Pumping and Reversible Air Conditioning
• IEA Bioenergy Task 40

• International Electrotechnical Commission
• IRENA
• One Watt Initiative
• World Energy Outlook
• Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
• Renewable Energy Policy Network(REN21)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• IEA- Annex 18
• International Energy Agency
• Decision establishing an International Energy Agency
• World Energy Outlook
• IEA's Database of Energy Efficiency Policies and Measures
• IEA's Database of Climate Change Policies and Measures
• IEA Energy Conservation in Buildings and Community Systems Programme (ECBCS)