U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright stated on Thursday that global oil production needs to more than double. At the same time, he criticized the European Union and the state of California for what he termed as wasteful spending on "inefficient green energy."

In recent years, energy discussions at the World Economic Forum have consistently revolved around pathways to promote low-carbon policies. However, during a dialogue at the Davos forum with Vicki Hollub, CEO of Occidental Petroleum, Wright emphasized that global energy supply will continue to rely on oil for decades to come.

Wright pointed out that the EU's corporate environmental regulations are posing risks to energy cooperation between the United States and Europe, warning that these regulations could impact American natural gas exports to the continent.

"These regulations could expose (U.S. producers) to legal liability risks when supplying natural gas to Europe," Wright said. "We are working with our European counterparts to try to eliminate these barriers."

The EU requires all companies importing oil and gas into Europe to monitor and report methane emissions associated with those imports, a move aimed at curbing emissions of this potent greenhouse gas.

Following months of pressure from businesses and multiple governments, the EU agreed last month to significantly scale back the scope of two landmark pieces of legislation: the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive.