Despite ongoing economic and geopolitical challenges, CEOs in the energy, natural resources, and chemicals (ENRC) sector remain confident in their growth prospects and are intensifying their focus on artificial intelligence (AI), talent development, and sustainability to future-proof their organisations, says a global study.

The KPMG 2025 Global Energy, Natural Resources and Chemicals CEO Outlook study, done among 110 CEOs from companies with annual revenues of over US$500 million across the world’s largest economies, says 84 per cent of CEOs are optimistic about mid-term industry growth, up from 72 per cent in 2024. Their optimism is fueled by strong demand for fossil fuels and renewables and innovation in energy storage, smart grids, and carbon capture. About 78 per cent of CEOs remain positive about their own company’s growth. Concerns include shifting regulations, trade volatility, and inflation—especially in the chemicals sector.

AI gaining momentum

As CEOs continue to navigate a turbulent world—marked by fluctuating trading conditions, supply chain interruptions, and regulatory uncertainty—AI is playing an increasingly pivotal role across every facet of the sector. The survey underscores the growing importance of AI and its impact on a wide range of strategic priorities.

About 65 per cent of CEOs rank generative AI as a top investment (up 12 per cent increase from 2024), and 72 per cent plan to allocate 10–20% of their budgets to AI in the next year. About 66 per cent expect ROI from AI within 1–3 years (up from 15 per cent last year), and 51 per cent believe agentic AI will transform operations and workforce efficiency.

They cite key barriers to AI adoption include ethical concerns (55 per cent), fragmented data systems (49 per cent) and regulatory complexity (47 per cent). The top technological risks affecting cybersecurity are fraud (64 per cent), identity theft & data privacy (59 per cent), and cyber-attacks (51 per cent).

'CEOs are rethinking their approach to the energy transition and retraining teams to keep up with the rise of AI, to build a workforce that’s quicker, smarter, and ready for the future. With AI and especially agentic AI’s potential to drive real operational gains and help companies reach their sustainability goals faster, the call for stronger governance and oversight will be more important than ever,” says Anish De, Global Head of Energy, Natural Resources, and Chemicals (ENRC), KPMG International.

Talent takes centre stage

The CEOs say that talent shortages persist, especially among engineers in oil, gas, mining, and metals. About 72 per cent of the CEOs are focusing on retaining and retraining high-potential talent. Top talent challenges include skills gap (43 per cent) and competition from tech firms offering high salaries (22 per cent). About 40 per cent of CEOs are reskilling and upskilling roles impacted by AI, while 72 per cent are focused on retaining and retraining top talent.

Climate mandates are an issue, and 82 per cent of CEOs believe AI can support emissions reduction and energy efficiency. About 62 per cent are confident they can meet the 2030 net-zero goals, though only 38 per cent have fully integrated ESG into capital decisions. About 74 per cent see AI enhancing climate risk analytics, and 79 per cent support AI for improving sustainability-related data and disclosures.