Energy has long been a major factor in the development of countries and their economies. Concerns relating to environmental pollution, economic diversification, and regional competitiveness have recently intensified in the Gulf region, and the area is now attempting to overcome its energy challenges systematically. The member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have the most prodigious energy reserves in the world. As of 2012, the region held 486.8 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, approximately 37.5 per cent of global supply, with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia holding the lion's share, at 20 per cent of the global total. The latest BP figures for 2013 indicate that the area collectively produced 17.3 mb/d (million barrels per day). With the advantage of enormous oil reserves and small, albeit growing, populations, the region exports the majority of its oil production. The region also holds approximately 42 Tcm (trillion cubic metres) of natural gas, about 23 per cent of global natural gas reserves, but it only produces about 8 per cent of total global production. At current production rates it is estimated that the region's current proven oil reserves will last another 70 years and its natural gas reserves for another 118 years.
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