Perspective was offered by Dr. Steven Chu, the 12th Secretary of the Department of Energy, in his keynote address opening the Energy Information Administration’s two-day annual conference in Washington, D.C. on April 7-8.

“We have a problem. We have many problems,” said Chu, saying that energy issues are directly linked to the health and welfare of the country’s economy and environment.

He said our dependency on importing oil is costing the country hundreds of billions of dollars annually, which is a drain on the economy. Chu said China is following a similar trend, with oil imports for the expanding economy nearing 50 percent, which compares with about 60 percent for the United States.

The International Energy Agency revised its expectations for global oil demand in 2009 down 1.0 million bpd to 83.4 million bpd, with the revision more than expected, updating its outlook in its monthly Oil Market Report released on Friday (4/10). If the projection is accurate, it would mark a 2.4 million bpd decline in global oil consumption compared with 2008.

The reduced demand expectations for 2009 continues a steady string of downward monthly revisions by the agency, with the IEA saying “a reassessment of GDP assumptions and much lower-than-expected 1Q09 demand data” triggered the latest change in its outlook.

“The pace of contraction is close to early 1980s levels, with a growing consensus that economic and oil demand recovery will be deferred to 2010,” said the IEA.