He told an energy event in India that it was time this balancing role was respected and acknowledged by the international community.
His remarks come amid concerns among energy-importing nations about the recent rise in the oil price.
“We could have another unanticipated, unplanned disruption. We’ve seen Libya, we’ve seen Nigeria, we’ve seen Venezuela and we have sanctions on Iran. These supply disruptions need a shock absorber,” Al-Falih told the CERAWeek event by IHS Markit.
“The shock absorber has been, to a large part, Saudi Arabia. We have invested tens of billions of dollars to build the spare capacity which has been two to three million barrels over the years — thats equivalent of production capacity of major producers.
“It has been like a spinning reserve in an electricity system waiting to step in if there is a disruption. We’ve done it out of a sense of responsibility.”
He added that the Kingdom wanted to continue playing that global balancing role but also hoped that “the global community of nations will respect and acknowledge what Saudi Arabia has done.”
In a wide ranging address, Al-Falih also questioned the “hype” around the electric vehicle market and said that petrol and diesel engines would co-exist with emerging electric and hydrogen fuel cell technologies for much longer than some commentators expect.
Saudi Arabia is boosting its energy ties with India and Al-Falih said Saudi corporations including Aramco, SABIC and Ma’aden planned to increase investments in the country.
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