A significantly bigger global middle class, expanded emerging economies and 2 billion more people, will contribute to 35% higher world energy demand by 2040, ExxonMobil Corp. forecasts in its 2015 energy outlook. The growth of the middle class worldwide will be significant, William Colton, ExxonMobil’s VP for corporate strategic planning, said during a recent presentation of the forecast at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “People and progress drive energy demand,” Colton said. “People nearly everywhere in the world can see how other people are living. This creates expectations.” Colton said benefits of modern technology and energy are self-evident, particularly to those who are only now beginning to gain access to them. “To help billions to reach the middle class and living standards to rise, the question remains how to expand modern technology and energy’s benefits while protecting the environment.”
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