Hello, and welcome to the launch of the International Energy Agency's Global EV Outlook 2024. I'm Jethro Mullen, head of the IEA's communications team, and I'm joined today by IEA Executive Director, Dr. Fatih Birol, and our Chief Energy Technology Officer, Dr. Tim Morgul, who led the analysis of the new report. And I would note that the new report is free to read and download on our website, and comes with a data explorer and a policy explorer for those of you who wish to go deeper into the details. For today's press webinar, Dr. Birol will make some opening remarks, and then Dr. Gull will present the key findings of the report. We'll then take questions from journalists. For the journalists taking part in the press webinar, we invite you to send your questions via the Q&A function in the Zoom. You can do this at any point during the presentation, and we'll also take a two-minute break right after the presentation for you to enter your questions. And with that, I'll hand over to our Executive Director, Dr. Birol. Many thanks, Giotro. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, colleagues around the world. We are here today to discuss one of the key components of clean energy transition around the world, namely electric vehicles. In the last few years, we have seen an extraordinary increase of electric car sales around the world. Having said that, we also read in the last few months a lot of news, mostly bad news, about the situation of the electric car sales and the penetration around the world. And when you look at them, when you read them, you would believe that the electric car sales are coming to a stop, slowing down, or even the electric car penetration is seeing. We see a reverse in the trends, and it is a different picture that we have seen in the last few years. Therefore, I believe our annual report, Global Energy Vehicle Outlook is a good source to see those news versus the data. We at the IEA believe in data. As I tell my colleagues, Dr. Gil, who is the Chief Energy Technology Officer and all my colleagues, we believe data always wins. So, therefore, we look at the data, and I wanted to thank my colleague, Dr. Gil and his great team, Areselli Fernandez and others, putting this data-heavy publication together. What are the trends globally in the electric car sales? First of all, when I look at the data, it does not show stop of the growth. It does not at all show a reverse of the growth of electric cars. It shows an extremely robust increase of global electric car sales, full stop. Dear colleagues, when we look at the first quarter, 2024, this year, and this data, this sort of forecast, this is not a projection or anything, this is the data. What happened in the first quarter of this year? 25 percent increase of electric car sales in 2024, first quarter vis-à-vis the first quarter 2023, so 25 percent growth, which I believe is a healthy and robust growth. And then we look at the company commitments strategies. Throughout this year, we expect that the more than one fourth of the cars sold in the world will be an electric car. China is the leader. In China, we think this year, almost every second car sold will be an electric car. In Europe, more than one fourth of the cars sold will be an electric car, and in the United States, about one out of nine car sold will be an electric car. So Europe is, the sales are increasing in Europe, but we should be fair that the sales are slowing down mainly as a result of the change in some countries' support policies. United States, when we look at the US numbers, they are growing faster than EU, but we think they are growing still, of course, slower than China. When we look at further, in the next 10 years, we think even with the existing policies, even there are no major new policies put in place, there are no good surprises, for example, coming from the batteries developments, with the current pace of the technology and the competitiveness of the car industry we expect in 2035. Every second car in 10 years of time in the world will be sold, and then this will be an electric car. So in 10 years of time, every second car sold will be an electric car in the world, even with the conservative existing policies. What is driving the electric car sales and penetration so strongly with all it is implications on energy sector, on climate, and the industry? Dear colleagues, there may be many drivers, but for me, there are three key drivers. When I look at the governments, companies, and the others when I talk with them, the first one is having a clean energy system, air pollution, climate change, these are the very first reason in many countries. Second, in some countries, governments would like to see more electric cars or electric vehicles in general as a response to energy security risks. Therefore, countries may want to see relying more on electricity than relying on the volatile and sometimes insecure oil markets and the price fluctuations. So energy security is the second driver. The third driver is the just industrial policy. Regardless of climate or energy, the industry sector, the innovation, the manufacturers want to be the leader in this new technology in this country or that country and have a good position. So these are the three, in my view, key drivers of the extraordinary growth of electric cars, the cleaner and climate change, oil security, and industrial policy. Here, it is clear that the electric car sales and their penetration will continue, but how fast it will be, there will be many factors, but for me the most important one is how competitive the electric cars will be vis-à-vis the traditional cars, the internal combustion engine cars. This is the key issue. And when I look at, again, China, I see that in China today, more than 60 percent, more than 60 percent of all electric cars sold are competitive or cheaper, in other words, than the internal combustion engines. Of course, the issue is not the same in other markets, but what will happen, especially in the battery technologies, will be decisive. If I may general, I can perhaps remind our viewers that in two days of time, we are coming up with another report on the batteries, what kind of good surprises we can expect from batteries in terms of their cost and the changing the chemistry and its implications. So this is, of course, a competitiveness. It's the main challenge for the electric cars, and we will see how it goes. But one issue in addition to batteries that we have to, of course, look how it goes, when it comes to the operating costs, for many consumers, they will also look at where the oil prices are. The oil prices today, flirting with $90 and above, is, again, an important indicator, the high oil prices, where the competitiveness issue could evolve in the next years to come. So, dear colleagues, before I finish my words, I'm passing it to Dr. Agil. I would like to, in my view, share with you three consequences, three implications that this the penetration of electric cars or, in other words, the electrification of the road transport may have on the energy sector and the industry. The first one is based on current policies, again, not extraterrestrial policies, not having a surprise innovation on the cost of batteries. With the current pace, we expect in the next 10 years of time, the EVs could avoid the need for more than 10 million barrels of oil in 10 years of time around 2035, if the EVs' penetration goes in this way. And this is, of course, a major issue to understand how the oil markets could evolve the penetration of electric cars. The second implication is the demand for batteries will grow very quickly. Whether or not the industry is ready to respond to this demand is a key question. And here, maybe a third point, again in this same context, another point is the critical minerals that are needed to manufacture those batteries. And here the challenge is the security and the sustainability of the critical minerals and, in general, the clean energy supply change. This is a key issue, and I know in many governments the concentration of critical minerals, both the mining but also at the same time the refining and processing is a key security consideration. So this is the second implication. And the third one, which I believe, again, an important one, is the issue of China and the China's leadership here. China is today, by far, dominating the electric cars. And China is the de facto the leader of the electric car manufacturing around the world. And today, more than half of the electric car sales in China are the electric cars, and only 10 percent of the sales are commercial cars. 50 percent electric cars and only 10 percent of the sales are commercial cars. I think this is a big deal and something to be underlined. To finish, I believe, the strong electric car penetration around the world. I talked today about China, Europe, and United States, three main markets. But a lot of other countries see the growth of electric car penetration from Southeast Asia to Latin America. This will change the energy markets. This will change the car manufacturing industry. And as we are happy to follow the trends, share with you. But I can tell you that government policies in Europe, in the U.S., in China, in other countries may change. These changes may have an impact on the pace of the electric car penetration, but our numbers and our discussion with the all-top key car manufacturers underline that the direction of travel in the transportation sector is very clear, namely the electrification. With this, I would like to turn to my colleagues with my thanks and congratulations, Dr. Aguil, to tell us a bit more about the numbers, assumptions, and the underlying implications. Thank you very much, Executive Director, and good morning. Everyone, welcome also from my end to today's launch of the 2024 edition of the Global EV Outlook, which the IAEA has been releasing for more than 10 years actually as part of its contributions to the Clean Energy Ministerial's electric vehicle initiatives. When it comes to electric cars, each of the last couple of years saw some element of concern about the prospects of a cloudy outlook for the year for electric car sales. As we went into 2021, the first year of the global pandemic, after the first year of the global pandemic, there was a worry whether the subsidy schemes that had been implemented over the course of 2020 to boost electric car sales would actually be sustained, because they helped bring electric car sales to new records. But they were, and so electric car sales grew strongly over the course of 2021 to reach 6.6 million electric cars being sold in that year. As we moved into 2022, there was a discussion focusing on these uncertainties around potential supply chain disruptions, the macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, as well as high commodity and energy prices and what they might actually mean. But by the end of the year, we saw electric car sales reaching over 10 million cars being sold in that year. As we went into last year into 2023, there was speculation that sales in China in the year before may have been inflated in anticipation of the phase out of incentive scheme by the end of 2022. But again, by the end of 2023, we observed that electric car sales had increased even further to reach nearly 14 million cars that were sold 35% higher than in the year before. And China, the country that was being discussed at the time, had accounted for around 60% of global sales. Now, it shouldn't be surprising that as we go into this year, there is again a lot of discussion, this time focusing very much about concerns that we are seeing in monthly market trends. And of course, there is truth to that discussion here as we look at all three major car markets. In China, electric car sales actually fell in February year on year, but this year, the month of Chinese New Year, over the entire first quarter, sales in China were up 35% year on year. In the United States, the sales share of pure electric battery cars actually declined over the first quarter, but this was compensated somewhat by a growth in the share of plug-in hybrids and overall sales grew by almost 15% year on year in the United States relative to the first quarter of last year. And finally, in Europe, electric car sales dropped in March in key markets like Germany where the subsidies were actually a phase out, but also in Italy. But it's worth noting here that the overall car market was also sluggish. The share of electric cars and total car sales in March was actually pretty similar to last year. And over the entire first quarter, electric car sales in Europe grew 8% year on year. Globally, what we have seen is that electric car sales, as our executive director already mentioned, were up one quarter compared to the sales in the first quarter of 2023, which we think is a very healthy growth despite the observed challenges that we saw. Around 3 million electric cars were sold over the entire first quarter globally, which is equivalent to the total electric car sales over the course of the entire year 2020. Now, we cannot say for certain, of course, how this year will develop. And as every year, there are reasons to be concerned in some car markets such as Europe, for example. But given the trends that we have observed, we expect this year to be another strong year for electric car markets. Our current expectation is for electric car sales to increase to around 17 million over the entire 2024. And as a result of this growth, we estimate that electric car sales could account for more than 20% of car sales this year, up from 18% last year. In the three largest global car markets, electric car sales are going to be increasingly widespread, in particular, as the executive director already mentioned. We are expecting electric car sales in China to account for around 45% of all cars being sold this year. We actually saw China electric car sales already reaching or exceeding the 40% share over the course of March. The boost in electric car markets and sales has the potential to significantly change the global car industry. When you look at all conventional cars that were sold globally last year, then only around 10% were produced by companies that have their headquarters in China. The rest, as you can see here, comes from car makers in other countries, in particular Europe, Japan, of course, but also United States, Korea, and a couple of other countries. The electric car industry, however, looks very, very different. Of the 14 million electric cars that were sold globally last year, more than half were actually produced by Chinese companies. Now, China electric car sales are higher than those in Europe and the United States. It is, of course, understandable why Chinese companies have a lead here, and the strong competition among manufacturers in China could mean that the industry has some challenging times ahead of it over the coming years, but it is important to take note of the starting points of the different parts of the car industry when it comes to the transition to electric cars. Now, electric car manufacturers will, of course, seek to expand their reach to other car markets, including in emerging and developing economies, where overall car ownership today is still very low, and so there is a significant market potential, both for internal combustion engine vehicles as well as for electric cars. The good news for the electric car industry is that sales increased significantly last year in several of the emerging markets. In India, for example, electric car sales were up 70% year on year, reaching a sales share of around 2% the start of an industry. In Vietnam, overall, car markets contracted actually last year by around one quarter, whereas electric car sales recorded an unprecedented growth, accounting for 15% of total sales, and in Thailand, electric car sales more than quadrupled year on year, and the sales share of electric cars reached an impressive 10% very similar to the share we have seen in the United States. In other countries, such as Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, we still see much lower shares, but increasing sales, of course. When we are investigating these type of trends a bit more closely, we see two different stories that are emerging. The first story is one on which local car makers are emerging as leading companies. This is particularly true in India, for example, where around 80% of all electric car sales since 2010 came from Tata and Mahindra, which are two domestic producers. In Vietnam, the domestic producer Windfast was established in 2017 and now accounts for nearly all electric car sales in the country. The second story, though, is one in which the arrival of Chinese car makers has helped jumpstart electric car sales. In Thailand, for example, Chinese car makers counted for around three-quarters of electric car sales last year when Hozon, a famous Chinese car maker, launched the NetAvi model two years ago. It became a best seller because it was cheaper than other electric car models and started to be competitive with conventional cars. Very similar. In Indonesia, we're ruling another Chinese car maker, which produces one of the cheapest Chinese EVs, launched the Air EV less than two years ago. This became a great success as well. Chinese car makers accounted for 60% of electric car sales in Indonesia on average over the last two years. Again, very similar observations here for Brazil and Mexico. China's electric car market and its electric car industry are hugely significant for global trends. It is therefore worth looking in more depth at how some of the key indicators have been developing in China over the last few years to understand better what are the potential global implications. One of the main reasons why we see such strong growth in China is because electric cars are getting more and more affordable. In 2018, our estimate is that before any purchase subsidy, around 10% of the electric cars that were sold in China were cheaper than their average conventional equivalent. For last year, our estimate is that this number has jumped to over 60%, which is very important. Electric cars need to become cheaper to be able to compete with their conventional counterparts and reach mass markets much as solar PV has successfully done it in the power sector. And in China, prices have fallen to an extent that this is increasingly the case. It's unlike the situation in Europe and the United States, where electric cars are generally still more expensive. And so it is challenging to forecast a specific year if and when electric cars might break even on prices with conventional ones. But we can reasonably expect that an increasing number of electric cars will compete on prices in the next couple of years. It is very important here also to note that this idea of price competitiveness comes despite the trend that electric cars are increasingly, the sales are increasingly dominated by SUVs. Just as for conventional cars, electric cars in China are also getting larger. Back in 2018, over 40% of electric car sales in China were small cars and these were the first to be cheaper than the conventional equivalents, of course. But over the last five years, we have seen considerable price declines in electric SUVs. Many models have become competitive on prices with conventional SUVs. And so SUVs, electric SUVs now account for nearly 40% of electric car sales. An important reason other than pricing strategies of car manufacturers for why Chinese electric cars are getting cheaper is because of changes in battery chemistry. In 2018, less than 20% of electric cars sold in China were using so-called lithium-iron phosphate LFP batteries. In 2023, this number jumped to nearly two-thirds. Chinese LFP batteries are significantly cheaper to produce than other mainstream lithium ion chemistries. And so the LFP strategy has paid off in China. In two ways, it helped bring down the prices for electric cars and it cuts back the demand for critical minerals. Now, falling prices for electric cars are obviously very important for electric cars to be able to reach mass markets. But building consumer confidence and comfort requires more than that. It requires the development of an adequate public charging infrastructure. Today, most charging takes place at home or at the workplace. Our estimate is that almost 10 times, there are almost 10 times as many private chargers as there are public ones. Many governments are strengthening public support for, support for public charging. But the rollout so far has been very different by country. The first story is one where the rollout of public charging infrastructure has not kept pace with the electric car sales, such as, for example, in Norway, United Kingdom or the United States. In these countries, the number of electric cars per public charging point has actually increased over time from roughly 10 to 15 in the year 2015 to 25 to 35 per public charging point more recently. Important to remember that electric car sales grew very strongly in these countries. Nonetheless, simply because most electric car owners have access to private charging, 80% in Norway in the United States, 90% in the UK. But to enable mass market adoption, we will need more public charging points. Many consumers are unlikely to have access to private charging at home. Now, this is one story of charging infrastructure. The other one is in China, which is very, very different. As in other countries, also like Korea, for example, where most electric car drivers are living in densely populated city, the city's public charging is much more prevalent in China. Despite this enormous growth in electric car sales, the number of public charging points per electric car has actually remained somewhat constant over the last couple of years. As the Executive Director already mentioned, despite the challenges that we are seeing in some markets, our outlook to 2030 and 2035 remains a very positive one on the back of underlying market trends, but also supportive policy and industry actions. This will have implications for the car industry as well as for energy markets. Today, electric car sales are high, but of course it takes time until electric cars become a noticeable part of the fleet of the cars that we see on our road in our daily life. Today, around 8% of all cars on the road in China are electric. In Europe, it's around 4%, and in the United States, it is 2%. But as a result of the increasing sales, we project that even under current policy settings, more than 30% of the cars on the road in China could be electric by the year 2030. In the EU, as well as in the United States, we are approaching levels of somewhere in between 15% and 20% of all the cars on the road.  In 2030, under current policy settings, over 4 million barrels per day of oil is displaced just from the use of electric cars. Another 1MVD comes from vans and trucks, and nearly another 1MVD from buses and two three-wheelers. Is more possible? Yes, there is possible. If you look at all the announcements by government and industry, then we are quite encouraged. In our announced pledges scenario, we track all the goals and targets from governments and we assume that all pledges and commitments by countries materialize in full and on time. Under such a scenario, every second car sold globally by 2030 is electric. In China, two-thirds of all cars are sold are electric, 60% in Europe and more than 50% in the United States. When you compare these kind of government ambitions with the announcements from car manufacturers, then it is possible to meet these ambitions and even exceed them in some cases. Over 20 major car manufacturers representing more than 90% of global car sales in 2023 have set electrification targets. If you take all these targets from all manufacturers, in fact, together, then we'll have more than sufficient electric cars to be sold by 2030. If we look more closely at batteries, then the outlook to 2030 is even brighter. Global EV battery manufacturing capacity last year was around three times higher than actual demand and existing and committed battery manufacturing projects. So looking at those that are either under construction or have reached a final investment decision actually far exceeds government and car maker ambitions to 2030, there could even be enough battery manufacturing capacity available to reach the deployment needs in the IA's net zero by 2050 scenario, not only for electric cars but also for electrifying other road transport modes. There are many considerations here, of course, many questions that policymaking will have to deal with. They concern the geographical concentration of manufacturing projects and as our executive director already highlighted the access to critical minerals, but the industry outlook here is one of a potential opportunity and suggests that very high levels of electric car sales could be possible. With that, thank you very much for your attention and back to you, Jethyl. Thank you very much, Timo, for the presentation and Dr. Birrell for his remarks. So we now have time to take some questions from journalists. We invite you, those journalists in attendance, to send your questions through the Q&A function of the Zoom if you haven't done so already and please mention your major outlet along with your question. We're just going to take a two minute break to give you a chance to enter your questions and we will be right back. Welcome back. So thank you very much to all the journalists for the questions. We've got some very good ones and we're going to try and get through as many as we can in the time we have remaining. So perhaps I'll start with the question from Peter Campbell from the Financial Times. He says that much of the commentary from car manufacturers is that it is getting harder to sell EVs to mass market buyers. Can you explain the discrepancy with your findings? Is it driven by China? Is it because you include plug-in hybrid electric vehicles? Is it something else? And then we also have a question from, sorry, excuse me. We have a question from Sarah Stefanina from Carbon Pulse. How do you think the EU's ETS2 will affect the passenger car market? Do you expect to see a bigger jump in EVs? Are there any risks or disadvantages for drivers? And in that vein, in the question around potential new policies, policy changes, Peter Campbell from the Financial Times also asks, is it possible that government policy weakens on EVs, for instance, if Donald Trump gets elected in the US? How likely is weakening policy in your view? And have you modelled the potential impact? So I think Timor is going to take the first question about the mass market appeal of EVs. And then Dr. Biral can come to the next question. Timor, over to you. Yeah, thank you. It's an excellent question. In fact, so there is a lot of discussion currently in the context of the auto industry, financial markets, et cetera. There are tight margins, volatile, metal prices, high inflation, a phase out of subsidies in some countries. All this has led to a lot of discussion and concerns, in fact, around whether EV sales can get to another level. The answer to your question is really in all of the above, in many ways. Partly, it is really China. China electric car sales have been pushing ahead 35% year on year in the first quarter. This is just data. It's not us forecasting anything or speculating anything, but this is just the reality at a time where all these concerns are being discussed and where 60%, more than 60% of all electric cars sold in China were actually cheaper than their internal combustion engine counterparts. In other markets, indeed, much of the reporting was focused on pure battery electric cars, but we have been seeing some strong growth in plug-in hybrid sales in China as well as in the United States. There are a couple of other factors at play. We'll need to see how the European Union's CO2 standards for cars and vents that will come into place or the next phase will come into place as of 2025 will play out. I think the discussion that we have seen around the uncertainties is legitimate. There are important concerns to be addressed, but the data that we have seen in the market for all these reasons has shown continued healthy growth. Thank you, Timor. Now to the questions on potential changes in policies. If there's a change in the administration in the U.S., if the potential impacts of the EU's ETS2 and also a question from Gabriela Farhangi of Kalanish Power Materials, does the IAC see the need for countries with more mature EV penetration in Europe to reinstate subsidies to boost electric car growth? So this changing, evolving picture in terms of policies, how do you say it, Dr. Bero? So I think this is again a legitimate question because the government policies do play an important role with the pace of penetration of electric cars. And having said that, one should see a picture very clearly. In many countries, there is a huge competition for the next chapter of the industry sector, which is clean energy technology manufacturing. This can be solar panels, windmills, heat pumps, electric cars, batteries. I think in the United States or in Europe or elsewhere, even if there is a change in the government policies not to be so friendly or supportive of the clean energy policies, if those countries, if those industries want to be still competitive with China, with other countries, they have to continue to push for the clean energy technology manufacturing. This is an industrial policy. This is not related directly to climate change or energy or other things. Just this is the next chapter of the industry sector where we see everybody sees that it belongs to clean energy technology manufacturing. So regardless of the climate concerns, if a government, if an economy wants to be competitive in the future, if industry sector wants to be competitive in the future, they still need to push ahead with the electric cars and other clean energy technology manufacturing. Thank you, Dr. Beryl. And now a question from Aminah Said from Saifa News asking about critical minerals. Is refined mineral capacity enough to meet EV battery needs in the short and long term? And then also a question on the sustainability or the emissions impact of plug-in EVs. So there are a lot of assertions saying plug-in hybrid EVs aren't very beneficial for reducing emissions. Are EVs a climate-friendly solution? What does your analysis show? And then a question on the world energy outlook projection for peak oil demand this decade. Are these trends you're seeing in electric cars in line with your projection that global oil demand is set to peak this decade? So for Timo, perhaps the critical minerals and the emissions impact of EVs. And then the last question to Dr. Beryl. Okay, thank you, Jethro. Again, excellent question. So of course a clean energy transition means that we'll have significantly more demand for a variety of different critical minerals in fact. And this is not only about electric cars, but it's also about renewables and various other clean energy technologies. When you look at stated government climate ambitions, as we have it in our announced pledges scenario, then demand for critical minerals more than doubles until 2030. When we're also collecting of course information about all planned critical minerals projects, and we do believe that they would be sufficient to support this type of demands. There are risks of course, as always an energy that comes with potential delays in the projects, et cetera, et cetera, technology specific shortfalls could exist. But we do believe that in the near term for these government pledges that have been made, there's sufficient projects in the pipeline. The second question about the environmental benefit, I think that probably links very much to recent discussions, recent report at the EU level, where the rated fuel economy of plug-in hybrids was found to be overstating real world efficiency, which was confirmed by that study. This discussion is not new. There was a lot of debate around that, so it's been good to see that this study has been confirming yet that particular expectation. Drivers often don't operate plug-in hybrids in their full electric modes. That's what seems to be coming out of this particular study, and so EU technical regulation will need to accommodate that in a better way moving forward, and I'm sure that this will be happening regardless. I think it's important to point out that plug-in hybrids are more energy efficient than conventional vehicles and still offer emission benefits, even if they're only driven in electric mode for part of their time. But of course, pure battery electric vehicles are from the point of view of emissions. The most sustainable choice here, which can be significantly lower. The emission savings can be significantly lower even compared with these plug-in hybrids. Thank you. Thank you, Timor. On the critical minerals question, I would note that we will be releasing our critical minerals outlook in mid-May, which will go deeper into some of these questions. Specifically on batteries, we also have, as Dr. Birrell mentioned earlier, a special report on batteries that we're releasing on Thursday, which will look into the broader question of batteries and their entire ecosystem, the life cycle from start to finish. So, a good opportunity to go deeper into some of those questions. We, speaking of questions, we're running a bit. Yeah, no, we are running a bit short on time. So, one last question for Dr. Birrell, and then we will have to wrap up. Yeah. So, lots of reports coming from the IAEA. You have a lot of things to do, Jetrun, as well as the colleagues who are putting together those reports. Now, the big question is, the answer is very simple from our point of view. There are several key drivers, which we think will bring the global oil demand peaking by 2030. One key driver is, of course, electrification of the transportation sector, and here the electric cars play a critical role, and the numbers, the expectations that my colleague Dr. Gulen, his team put together, is very much in line with that. But it's not the only one. It's not the only one. Another driver is, in my view, that many of us may not consider as much as it deserves is Chinese economy. Dear colleagues, when you look at the last 10 years, more than two-thirds of the global oil demand increase came from China. China was the driver of more than two-thirds of the global oil demand growth. And the Chinese economy, in the last 10 years or so, increased more than six percent per year, an average growth, a big growth of the economy. But now, looking at the next years to come, I think there is a consensus among all the institutions, including the Chinese government, that the Chinese economy will slow down considerably. And the structure of the economy will be much lighter, less energy intensive than before, which means that it will have significant implications, the slowing down of the economy, changing the structure of the economy for the Chinese oil demand growth together with the electric car penetration around the world. The improving energy efficiency or the fuel efficiency of the cars for the interim combustion engine is another driver. So putting all of these things together and these numbers that we have just presented to you, we believe that the global oil demand set to peak by 2030. And to be very frank, this is not only us, the IEA thinks so. If you look at, if you have time and look at the publications reports of the key oil companies, their expectations, most of them, if not all, they also see expect a peak oil demand by 2030 for the world. So this is just to put the things in the context. We cannot claim that we are the only one, but we are one of the stakeholders here, which see that the global oil demand set to peak by 2030 and electric cars will play an important role here. Back to you, Jethro. Thank you, Dr. Birral. As I mentioned, we've run quite a bit over time and we still have more questions coming in. So for those of you who have questions that didn't get answered during the Q&A, please do follow up with us. We're very happy to get back to you. So the best way to is to email us at press at IEA.org and we'll get back to you as soon as we can. And it just remains me to thank Dr. Birral and Dr. Girl. Thank you to the journalists for the excellent questions and to everyone who's been following us online for your interest in our work and a reminder that the full global EV 2024 outlook is available for free on our website, along with a data explorer and a policies explorer. So do please take a look and we look forward to hopefully seeing you, seeing many of you again on Thursday for the launch of our special report on batteries in secure energy transitions. Thank you and goodbye.


In the last four days, the Russian military has likely redeployed several battalions to the Bakhmut sector, following Ukrainian successes at Bakhmut's flanks and growing concerns about Wagner mercenary groups' reliability. Russia probably seeks to claim at least some level of success in the war, the British Defence Intelligence said. This move represents a serious commitment since Russia retains only a few uncommitted units in Ukraine. The battle of Bakhmut has been ongoing since August 2022 and has been described as one of the largest and heaviest engagements in the war. Moscow grows increasingly reliant on the Wagner group in the Bakhmut battle. In the meantime, Ukraine's forces have seized the initiative around Bakhmut and advanced up to 500 meters in some areas.


we have progressed we actually the pioneers in those I think I don't know if they're pioneers in that fields but I like the distinction here of course as I just said what is so progressive about you getting more and more naked she feels oppressed because she's sitting there with a hijab he is wearing a turban he is fully covered as well is the man oppressed


and the Think Tech Hawaii studios for another exciting episode of Security Matters. This is one I've been waiting to get out to you for a little while. I'm very happy to have a bunch of axioms with me today from Access Communications. We've got a couple of our Women in Security Forum Scholarship Award winners with us today. We've got Elaine Palome who was instrumental in helping us drive the scholarship program this year. And really before we get started, want to give a big shout out to Access for being the lead sponsor of this program. It was a brand new program. It came up very quickly. And we are all very happy with the success of it this year and looking forward to greater and greater things next year. So I'll do some intro's real quick, real quickly, Elaine Palome is with us today. Antoinette King is with us today and Carrie Severlin is with us today. And Antoinette and King are our awardees. So I'll go there first. And Carrie, you've not been on yet. So we'll start with you today. I'll put you right on the spot. Just give us your history, a little bit about how long you've been in the industry. You know, what you care to share. Don't give everything away on social media these days. You know, we've got to protect ourselves a little bit. But whatever you care to share, let our audience get to know you. Thank you. Yeah, of course. Thank you, Andrew, for having me on the show. I'm really excited to be here. Even though Antoinette and Elaine has been here multiple times, it seems like. It's my first. So really glad to be here. So I am Carrie Severlin. I am the HR business partner for Access Communications. I actually work on Elaine Palome's team. So she is my boss. She is fantastic, as everybody I'm sure already knows. I've been with Access since 2017. And it was my first entry, if you will, into the security industry. Kind of fell into the company after looking for an organization that does align with my values that does offer different types of benefits to their employees as far as learning and development and really extending more than just your basic HR role. And that's what Elaine has brought me and Access overall. Previous to that, I did work for a few tech companies, but nothing specific, security. So I feel like it's time to be here. Awesome, thank you. Yeah, I love it that you chased down the values that you had. That's a super important piece of the Access community, I know. Antoinette, you've been on, but give us your... What's going on with you and a little bit of your history for whoever may have missed you. You've blown up in social media this year. So share a little bit out there anyway for us. Thank you. Thank you so much, Andrew. It's always a pleasure and a joy to be with you and have conversation. I'm Antoinette King. I am a key account manager with Access Communications based out of the Northeast. I've been in the security industry for 21 years already and I started out in the integration side as a technician, believe it or not. So I kind of went through the ranks of all different roles within the integration side. And three and a half years ago, Access knocked on my door and of course you have to answer when Access knocks, but it's kind of the pinnacle of your career, right? So here I am. I started out as a regional sales manager and RSM and then moved over to key accounts and it's an amazing place to work for. And again, as Carrie mentioned, the culture here is not something that you can replicate or emulate by reading a book, right? It's something that's visceral and it's just an amazing company to be a part of. Awesome. Maybe Elaine created it all. Let's see. We'll hear from Elaine next. So Elaine, there's a lot of pressure here for this culture that's so amazing that everyone's sought out. Anyway, give us a little bit of your viola for those who may not know you and bring us up to speed with Access. Andrew, thank you again for asking us to be a part of your program today. And yes, I did want to speak just for a few minutes about the Access culture. Before the show began, we talked a little bit about the fact that my team covers everybody from Canada to Argentina and all of the countries in between being the head of human resources. What's interesting is that no matter where you are in the world and we have many, many locations throughout the world, you can always tell that you're in an Access office, even if you close your eyes and just listen, because the culture is that strong within our offices. So yes, it is an important aspect of who we are and what we do and is Antoinette measured. It's our competitive advantage and certainly not anything anybody else can copy. One thing that is important about our culture and it sort of relates to our topic today and that is that we believe in being a diverse organization and have worked very hard over the last couple of years to increase the number of women in our ranks. And I was very thrilled to be asked to help form the Women in Security Committee through SEA and even more so thrilled that we were able to launch this very important scholarship program this year. So thank you. No worries. Was the diversity program as pronounced? I mean, Access has always been big. So you came there 12 years ago. Was it, I mean, with a global company, I think they were global even then, right? So how's that mix up?  I would just think so just from being global. Well, it's certainly been diverse in terms of the number of countries that people that we have and the number of countries that we represent. But if you look at any one Access office, that particular office has not always been the most diverse and where we've really struggled is having an equal balance between men and women. So there are approximately 50% men in the world and 50% women and logic would tell you that your organization should be representative of that fact. And in reality, we are largely in a male dominated industry, which is no news for anybody. When I joined Access five years ago, we were 75% men and 25% women. And it really felt that we needed to do something about that. Access has been incredibly good to me as a human, as a person. And for me, the way to give back to Access was to have some efforts and have some focus and be involved in making us a more diverse organization. It takes years and years to make change. But I'm happy to say that over 33% of the women that we've hired this year and promoted this year have been women. So we are moving the needle in the right direction, I guess. That's awesome. And Carrie, you mentioned that when you came to Access, you found a home, a company that sort of represented the values that you were seeking to work for. And obviously, you had probably interviewed with Elaine, so you could tell she was amazing right off the bat. Talk just a little bit about what you saw there compared to what else maybe you were looking at out in the market at the time. Yeah, absolutely. So one of the things that was really important to me was really following through on your promises during that recruitment candidate half cycle. And what was important for me a lot of the time was the team environment, that teamwork, but also your own individual growth and learning and development. And Access is really amazing because they offer so many opportunities outside of just your one role, your one project. You're able to do endless things and you can stop me if I get way too off topic, but they offer wish and reimbursement is one thing. They offer exchange programs. So you can literally join another team for a short period of time or a long period of time, travel to another country pre-COVID and spend some time working in a new environment and culture in a different role or even a similar role, depending on what that exchange actually is. They offer professional membership reimbursements. They offer 24 hours really of any type of development that you want to work on. And you can always of course work with your amazing managers that Access has and really put a path in place for you to be the best that you can be. So that was really, really important to me. And Elaine and I had talked during my recruitment process about what this position was and what I really wanted to get out of it. And it has held up so far and I don't see it going anywhere anytime soon. That's really great. That's awesome. I think I see a Hawaii office for Access in the future. Maybe you know that. You're more welcome.  That's a, we have a rep that comes always from the usually Southern California, I think from Access is how we get handled in Hawaii. But when they find out how much of a market is actually here, you know, we can maybe influence that a little bit. But you got three volunteers to staff your office, right? Yeah, right. Absolutely. And Antoinette, so you've been there, I moved around a little bit, I know that the field, there's oftentimes a lot of men in the field, a lot of men in the sales area. And what you're feeling about the diversity, the effort that Elaine brought up, is it changing? Are you seeing change? Are you working with more women out there in the field in our industry specifically? Yeah, so this year has been a year of change for me in terms of my network. And it really has blown up. I feel like there's a fundamental shift in our industry right now. And it's being driven a lot by men like you that support what we're doing and support the initiative. Absolutely, I'm seeing more and more women having the courage, especially young professionals, I'm just so enamored by this younger generation. They have a drive and they have just a courage to step out and do things that are new and step out of their comfort zone. When I was younger and I was in the field and I was a technician, I kind of wanted to blend in, right? I didn't want to stand out. I just wanted to do my job. And it was a big deal that a woman was on, with work boots and a ladder and a tool belt. I didn't have women to look to. I didn't have role models. And I'm just seeing more and more now that there's an increase in younger women in our industry. I'm super excited to be able to talk to them about my experience, but learn from them and learn the courage and the things that they're doing in order to drive these changes. It's super, super exciting. I really hope that the role that the Women's Security Forum can play in helping those discussions, help the companies that don't really necessarily know how, maybe they're male-led, male-owned, and they don't know how to start these conversations to diversify their work force. I'm hoping we can be sort of a lead with our organization in that way. Elaine, what do you think, maybe one of the more impactful things that our Women's Treaty Forum can do for those organizations that are struggling to build a diversity program? Well, that's a really good question. And I get asked that question a lot. And a lot of the literature that you read will tell you that diversity needs to come from the top down. And I can see the utility of that, but I also can tell you that it can grow from the bottom up as well. It can start even within your own function or your own department, looking across your own sphere of influence and saying, okay, what is the balance I have now between ethnic minorities and white people or between men and women? And what can I personally do to better balance out my department? And it isn't just a nice to have anymore. It's a business imperative for us to have more diverse organizations. The talent pool, as I'm sure anybody will tell you, is really small right now. And we need to be able to attract any and all people to be able to have the right people and the right jobs at the right time. So I guess my advice is don't worry about getting started or having executive support. Just get started. Get started with your own organization and make it a grassroots effort. Yeah, Hawaii doesn't sort of have that problem. It's a super diverse culture here. And so our hires are multi-ethnic, you know, and we have, I think our lead engineers are women.  And our lead technician is a woman. We have our service desk, our service manager is a woman. So it's, and I don't know if that's because of Christine's leadership per se, but these were just the people that were excel, excellent at the top in Hawaii where we don't have a large really pool of people to pick from. Do you- Can I give you a hint as to why this is true?  That means a lot right there. It makes a very strong statement up front when you have more women in leadership positions. And it gives other women in your organization more courage to apply to move up into those leadership roles. So I would, you know, I'm not saying that's the answer for everybody, but if we can get more women in leadership positions, it encourages other women to stretch for those positions as well. Yeah, it's interesting how few security organizations, rather it's the manufacturers, you know, there's Eddie, there's a few manufacturers that are owned by women. There's a couple of integration firms, I know of that are woman owned, but there's just not that many. And so that's a thing we've got to work on. Maybe we need this next generation to start some of these companies, right? If there's not a friendlier organization to, or industry to get started in. There's a lot of room, I think, within the security industry to grow and to learn and to build a company of your own. Maybe that's what it's gonna take in some of these cases. A lot of these other firms are sort of entrenched in their ways.  So I'm not sure what it's gonna take for them to learn. But I sure hope our women's security forum can be a big piece of that. Kerry, from your perspective, what you've seen in the industry, I'm not sure if you've been after a lot of the trade shows or how you've interacted with the other elements of the industry. But what's your take on our trending? Is it reflecting what Antoinette's saying? Are you seeing more women and more diversity? And are the younger people, are they pleased with what they're seeing or do we need to do more? Yeah, and I think overall there has been a major shift in discussing and seeing more women. I'm not sure if the diversity is actually there. I think it's gonna take quite some time to get to that 50-50 that Elaine had mentioned earlier. But I think that the discussions are there. The conversations are happening. People are becoming more aware, gaining more knowledge of the benefits of having that diverse group of that 50-50 split that it's gonna happen. It's slowly happening. So I'm not sure the numbers are there quite yet, but the conversations are. I'll also make a point that diversity is really important in the numbers and that representation piece. But inclusion is a whole other topic. Just going back to some of those values that I had mentioned before. I mean, Axis does an amazing job making sure that inclusion piece is happening in that teamwork, that team orientation, making sure everyone is failing a part of the group. So inclusion is more of that sense of belonging. And you really can't have diversity if you don't have that inclusion piece. I know Antoinette mentioned she started, she was the only female with the tool belt and that she probably was hiding in the corner because she didn't necessarily feel belonging. Antoinette, I don't wanna speak for you by any means. Since I don't belong here, I'm different. Why, what am I doing? I'm gonna go hide and do my job and go home. Whereas if you have that inclusion piece, you have that feeling of belonging, you're more apt to speak up, show what you're worth. And I think that's why Elaine had also mentioned that having that female woman CEO opens up doors because you have that sense of, oh, I can do that too, I can get there. Awesome, I love that comment. So Antoinette has access worked on any of some like virtual inclusivity things. I know a lot of companies have had happy hours and things like that. Have you been a part of that? Is that, has access reached out virtually to its members, or to its- Oh yeah, yeah, I mean- Yeah, it's, go ahead. Access is one big love fest. I think, when all of this happened and our entire world turned upside down, the priority and what I felt, this is my experience, but the priority from our management team was, is everybody okay? Like they wanted to make sure that the employees were feeling okay mentally, right? Physically, emotionally, there were the virtual Avengers, like we literally have an entire team channel just to talk about different things, having nothing to do with your job, right? Having nothing to do with how many widgets did you sell today? It's show me something that you did today to make yourself feel good. Talk about what you're cooking. Everybody's cooking at home now. There's a channel for that. So I think that, again, going back to that culture and I keep beating a dead horse, but it truly speaks to the importance of the human element of business, right? And if we continue to go down this path, we're only going to get better and we're only going to attract more talent. And I think what Elaine said was so poignant about the fact that you're attracted to things that are like you, right? If I see a woman in a particular environment that's maybe something I want to aspire to, absolutely I'm going to work a little bit harder because I'm going to feel like, well, she did it, I did it. And that's another reason why I've been really vocal on social media lately and putting my face out there. I reach out to younger women in the industry, let's get together, let's have coffee, let's do, it's so important for me to have younger people be attracted to our industry because it's exciting and fun and we want them to be here. And that's the key, attracting talent from other industries because we're a cool industry, we're still a tech industry and we are inclusive and Axis does a tremendous job at that. And in terms of the virtual things, we didn't skip a beat as an organization at making sure that we're keeping that diversity and inclusion messaging going. Regardless of whether or not we're gathering in groups, there are constant perpetual online trainings and calls and whatever, just all around this diversity and inclusion messaging. Cool, so have you met new people because of the virtual forums that happened internally? Did you find, like I saw some groups were doing like musical things and some were doing artistic things and showing off their balancing skills or whatever. Have you learned some new things about people that you didn't know that were, made the light shine brighter on them? Absolutely, I'm part of the CAM organization. We're a global organization with an Axis and we do a CAMtastic happy hour and we do an AMIA version and an APAC version. So one of them, when it's APAC, they drink coffee, we're drinking booze, but we still, I've never had the opportunity. And Elaine, I mean, I don't even think that we would have thought to do stuff like that, right? Like the company's been in business since 84, but we've never, and the technology's always been there but we just never thought to do that. And that's exciting to me. Just being able to connect with my colleagues across the globe, it just makes it feel more like a family. That's awesome. Yeah, the, I know last year in New York at S&G, Chelsea Render told me that diversity is getting invited to the dance hall and inclusivity is getting invited onto the floor. It sounds like at Axis, everybody's out on the dance floor having a coffee party, let's just call it that. Depends on what country and what time. So, Jeremy, have you been able to participate in some of that as well? Yeah, you know, probably not as involved as Antoinette has been in the past, but solely getting myself out there. I've recently done some virtual events, webinars for SIA, just to educate some of our industry folks on bias training and different barriers to diversity and inclusion, but I'm not definitely out there quite yet as much as Antoinette. Awesome. Elaine, what do you see that these platforms have given us that we, you know, to Antoinette's point, we didn't even think about maybe a year ago? Yeah, so, you know, it's funny, I was talking with my team, I think a lot of the practices that we've adopted to help us get through COVID are gonna live on. If there's one, you know, silver cloud to the COVID, we're civil lining to the COVID cloud, it's that we have found better ways and frankly, deeper, more meaningful ways to communicate. So as an example, I meet with my team twice a week in the morning for a half hour coffee, a very traditional Swedish coffee break, it's called a Fika, where you have a coffee and a sweet roll and you get together and you talk about everything other than business. And I've learned more about the people on my team during the period of COVID than I have known in the previous four years and shame on me for not having recognized that sooner. If there's anything that I can say that the COVID has taught me, it is to manage it with the heart and with the head and that in times of strife and difficulty, managing with the heart is actually more important many times than managing with the head. We can always create schedules and parse out work and keep tabs on employees, that stuff is easy. But when you really spend time with people and get to know how they're feeling and what they're suffering with and their anxiety and their fears and the uncertainty and just being with them when they're going through that, that means so much more. And that's what keeps employees at companies these days. It's not the other stuff, it's the caring part. 100%. So let's talk a little bit about that anxiety just a minute. I wanna talk about this application process for the scholarship. I have brought this up. I've had nearly half of our awardees on yet. Carrie, from your perspective, when you thought about, hey, I'm gonna apply and maybe you've applied for other scholarships. I don't know, how was that experience for you? Yeah, no, it was an interesting experience because I don't know if I think there's a lot of other people that would probably follow in my shoes where you have a little bit of that imposter syndrome where you start to read the application and all the requirements and you're like, ooh, I don't know if I have all of the competencies that they're looking for in the background or I'm an HR, I'm not sure this applies to folks in HR. So definitely had that moment of pause where I'm not sure if I should even bother, am I really good enough to receive it? Obviously, I'm putting in the effort. Really glad I did. Really honored to be one of the recipients but there's always that moment of pause and I think that's somewhat typical of females and women in general. They actually say even when applying for a job, you won't if you don't meet 90% of the qualifications give or take whereas males on the other hand meet 60% male like okay, we'll give it a try. So even not only for a job but even on these different types of scholarship and applications, I think as females we face a little bit of that barriers that we create for ourselves. So really glad that I obviously moved forward and moved through a little bit of my anxiety and questions that I've received. That is awesome, me too. Answer that for yourself. I happen to know you're buttoning up a master's degree so and we were able to give scholarships to help cover existing school loans as well. So that was a nice feature I thought of our program this year. For yourself, the application process, how was that I'm sure you're writing all the time if you're doing master's work. So, but tell us what it was like for you to go through that experience. Yeah, so I love to write and anybody who knows me knows that. What I loved about this process was the questions that were asked on the application process were very difficult questions that really made me sit and think about what I can do with the education that I have to contribute back to this industry. And I loved the idea that they were challenging questions because it wasn't a check the box process. You really had to think about what it was that the scholarship meant and what you're going to do to try to contribute and give back, right? And I loved that kind of that recycling of the kindness. We're gonna give this to you to help you do better. What are you gonna do to give back to the community and specifically to women in our community? And that was amazing. And it made me want it even more because it makes me wanna drive and be better and be a good example. And this scholarship has provided an opportunity for women in our industry to better themselves so that they can take those other job, like Carrie was saying, the job description where you don't think that you meet the qualifications. It's giving women the opportunity to meet those expectations and to feel accomplished. And it was an amazing experience. Awesome, yeah. And it's open to men, although none applied. You know what I mean? So Elaine wasn't allowed to grade these two because they're in the same company. So she got to grade other awardee applications. But Elaine, how was that grading process? I think some of the interviews I've had with some of the awardees, they really put a lot into it. So I imagine it was difficult to split hairs. It was difficult, but I have to tell you it was fun and it was rewarding. So I set aside a whole Sunday afternoon to review the applications. And I have to say I really, really enjoyed reading them. It was clear that a lot of effort had been put into it. I love the question about who's your role model and reading different people's answers. People that I would not have necessarily thought of as role models. So it was really gratifying. I loved being a part of the process and I look forward to doing it again next year. Awesome, but we're getting down close. What, let's go around for final advice for women, anyone in the industry that you wanna give some advice to about our Women in Security Forum. Apply, go for it, put yourself out there. It, it can hurt. Awesome, Carrie? Yeah, she stole what I was gonna say. Absolutely, go for it. Even if you're questioning or have any doubt, self-doubt. And also reach out to other folks and really build your network and ask questions to help yourself grow and help get over any concerns or questions that you might have to move forward or that you're maybe doubting yourself. Really give them a little, they can give you a little push rather. So any benefit moving forward with these different scholarships, different events, it's worth it, go for it. Awesome, Elaine, final thoughts? Yeah, one final thought. So a lot of people come to me and say, hey Elaine, how can I get management experience when I don't have the management role? Well, this is a way to get management experiences to join an industry association group, network with others, possibly serve in an officer or a board level position. That's a great way to beef up your resume when you don't have any job-related management experience. So come join us. Yes, join us, the Women in Security Forum, join Axis, join our industry. Come and check us out, everybody. I really appreciate all three of you being on the show today. It was fun. I love this program and the success that we've had. And we'll talk about it some more in some future episodes. Everybody take care out there. Go Ro! Aloha. Thank you. Bye.


Item number, SCP-025. Object Class, Safe. Special Containment Procedures. SCP-025 is only to be opened during testing, as is the room in which SCP-025 is stored. Entry codes are to be given only to authorized research and security personnel, no other containment protocols required. Description, SCP-025 is a wooden wardrobe, measuring 0.97 meters by 0.62 meters by 1.95 meters, full of clothing dating from a number of time periods. Articles contained within the chest, collectively named SCP-025-1, match with styles of decades from the 1920s to the present. The apparel from each time frame varies with regard to style. For example, a polyester-striped shirt and a pair of charcoal soup pants both correspond with general styles of the 1970s. The only unifying aspect of every article contained in SCP-025 is that each one is in poor condition. Moths have eaten at much of the collection, and tears and runs are not uncommon. When any item from SCP-025 is put on, the wearer is observed to either to die or suffer an injury within 24 hours. The cause of death or injury in these instances is invariably linked to the aforementioned flaws in the clothing, but only ever appears to be an unrelated incident. Wearing a glove with a fingertip cut off may result in the loss of the fingertip through a simple kitchen accident like chopping onions. Similarly, a subject wearing a poncho with a sleeve missing will somehow cause the loss of the uncovered arm, be it an attack by a wild animal or a vehicular accident that necessitates the amputation of the limb. If placed in a sealed, unfurnished enclosure while wearing an item from the chest, the wearer will either seemingly spontaneously contract a flesh-eating disease that begins in the areas not covered by the clothing or suffer the failure of an organ located beneath an imperfection in the article. Diseases arising from such incidents may or may not be contagious. No study has been successfully undertaken due to the speed at which the strains observed run their course. Recommended that, if possible, samples of the disease be taken to lab for possible weaponization. Following is an abridged testing log of SCP-025. More thorough testing will accompany the declassification of the document in its entirety. Test log, SCP-025, section 1. Subject, D-778, a 42-year-old white male. Article, 1940s-era white tuxedo. Imperfections, torn seam in left shoulder. Test results. Subject was allowed free roam of the halls under agent Warrant Supervision. For approximately 45 minutes, nothing eventful occurred. However, at- Security tapes and eyewitnesses indicate that D-778 appeared to make an attempt at attacking agent Warrant Supervision. He in turn overcame the subject with a knife, causing an inch-deep gash in D-778's left shoulder, precisely at the point where the tuxedo's seam was ripped. Test halted. Subject later terminated. Subject, D-690, a 26-year-old white male. Article, 2004 Boston Red Sox baseball cap. Imperfections, missing size adjuster and back of cap. Logo in front, partially removed. Test results. Placed in a sealed room with the subject was a table on which were a loaded Jericho baby eagle 9mm handgun, a grill lighter, and a hatchet. D-690 chose to wear the cap backward for the test. Potential effects of this decision on the outcome of the test are unknown. Subject expressed reluctance to touch any of the objects on the table for several hours. Food and water were provided as necessary. After four hours of general inactivity, subject picked up the handgun and examined it. While holding it at roughly eye level, the weapon discharged into D-690's forehead, where the size adjustment band would have been. The round exited the subject near the part of the hat with the missing part of the logo. Subjects, D-736, a 22-year-old white male. D-771, a 23-year-old white male. Article, Burgundy striped sweater vest dating from 1973. Imperfections, articles seem to have been partially eaten by moths, several large holes in the front of the sweater. Test results, D-736 was asked by researching staff to wear the sweater vest, which he did under duress. D-771 was given a loaded handgun out of sight of the other test participant and instructed to, on a given signal, fire all six shots in the direction of D-736. After doing so, it was noted that every shot fired passed through one of the holes in the sweater vest, leaving the clothing intact and killing D-736. Firearm retrieved, surviving subject transported back to quarters. Subject, D-771, a 23-year-old white male. Article, sweater vest from above trial. Imperfections, same as mentioned. Test results, D-771 was this time placed in an empty room, dimensions 15 meters by 15 meters by 15 meters. Only objects in the enclosure were lights overhead. Subject initially complained of boredom, then lay on his back and went to sleep. After two hours and 14 minutes, two of the fluorescent light bulbs in the ceiling suddenly dislodged and fell. Both landed squarely on holes in the sweater, shattering upon impact. One of the tubes broke into jagged pieces that impaled D-771 in several areas, but only again through gaps already present in the sweater vest. Subjects vitals persisted for another six minutes, then ceased. Further testing locations will be selected to minimize possible damage to the surrounding area. Subject, Dr. Warrant, unplanned experiment. An unidentified individual left an article from SCP-025 on Dr. Warrant's desk that looked similar to an item of his own clothing. Any information about this incident and or the perpetrator of same should be reported immediately to senior staff. Article, lightweight scarf, dyed a number of colors, imperfections. Heavily pulled seam caused scarf to be considerably shorter and tighter in the middle. Test results, according to his itinerary, Dr. Warrant, wearing the item from SCP-025, was en route to the enclosure of SCP-025 for routine testing. However, he diverged from his intended path and began in a direction towards an entirely separate wing of the facility. Subject then entered the enclosure of SCP-173 without gathering accompaniment or following safety protocols, and, upon hearing the door closing, blinked. Cause of death listed as strangulation, resulting from a crushed windpipe. Subject, D-802, a 30-year-old Hispanic female. Article, 1980s flash dance style white shirt. Imperfections, right shoulder removed. Left sleeve completely cut off. Entire bottom hem shredded. Test results, data expunged. All present were presumed infected, then quarantined and data expunged. All further tests involving 1980s era fashion have been postponed indefinitely, due to the expenditures and safety hazards presented by the aforementioned experiment. Full cleanup estimated to take an additional weeks. Further testing authorized. Results now awaiting declassification. Item number, SCP-10. Object class, safe. Special containment procedures. The objects comprising SCP-10 are to be kept in numbered locked boxes in a high security facility. They are not to be worn except by test subjects. SCP-10 are only to be removed from storage for testing. Description, SCP-10 consists of a series of six apparently identical cast iron collars with numbered metal tags and one remote control. The control is SCP-10-1. The collars are SCP-10-2 through 10-7. The collars contain intricate electronic components and are powered by small, 5-millimeter in diameter, 2-millimeter thick 100 volt batteries. These batteries are rechargeable. The remote is a heavy black box resembling an old style handheld radio transmitter receiver with a primitive blue and white cathode ray screen and a series of more than 100 unlabeled buttons as well as a frequency tuner. Through trial and error, the frequencies of all six currently found collars have been discovered. A label in Russian is stamped into the metal along with a logo consisting of workers building a pyramid. No official Russian corporation or government agency uses this logo or matches the words stamped into the metal. Placing the collar around the neck of a person and securing it allows one to control their every movement with the remote. It is also capable of producing an adrenal response and activating or deactivating the sympathetic nervous system. The most abnormal feature of the collars is the effect they have on the body morphology. They allow the user of the remote to reconfigure the shape of the victim to an extent that is apparently only limited by the knowledge of the programming language of the remote. Addendum 10-1, History. SCP-10 was discovered in the basement of a lone man in the Midwestern United States after a local disappearance was connected to him. When the police raided the man's house, they found SCP-10 as well as several dead bodies. One of the bodies was identified to be the man. The others were several other missing persons. Cause of death seemed to be mass suicide. However, there were signs of significant struggle first. Addendum 10-2, Disassemble Experiment. Test 1, SCP-10-2 taken apart piecewise. The parts labeled and several photographs taken then reassembled. Result. After reassembly, SCP-10-2 continues to function. Test 2, SCP-10-8 constructed identically to SCP-10-2, but with the closest approximations available to the unreplicable components. Result. SCP-10-8 fails to function. Test 3, Unreplicable components from SCP-10-2 placed into proper locations on SCP-10-8. Result. SCP-10-2 ceases functioning with removal of components. SCP-10-8 begins functioning. Test 4, Components returned to SCP-10-2. Replicable components in SCP-10-2 replaced randomly with replicas. Result. SCP-10-2 begins functioning with return of components. Changing replicable components for replicas does not significantly reduce functionality. Replacement of a damaged transistor decreased time from transmission to effect of SCP-10-2, response to commands entered in the remote by 12%. Addendum 10-3, SCP-10 has been demonstrated to work more effectively in creating unskilled labor than for any other task. The logo is apt. Dr. W... Item number. SCP-035, Object Class, Keter. Special Containment Procedures. SCP-035 is to be kept within a hermetically sealed glass case, no fewer than 10 centimeters, four inches thick. This case is to be contained within a steel, iron and lead-shielded room at all times. Doors are to be triple locked at all times, with the exception of allowing personnel in or out. No fewer than two armed guards are to be posted at any time. Guards must remain outside at all times, and are not allowed within the containment room under any circumstances. A trained psychologist is to remain on-site at all times. Research personnel are not to touch SCP-035 at any time. SCP-035 must be moved to a new sealed case every two weeks. The previous case must be disposed of via SCP-101, as it shows no adverse reactions to SCP-035's corruption. Anyone who comes into contact with SCP-035 when it is in possession of a host is to be given an immediate psychological evaluation. Description SCP-035 appears to be a white porcelain comedy mask, although, at times, it will change to tragedy. In these events, all existing visual records, such as photographs, video footage, even illustrations of SCP-035, automatically change to reflect its new appearance. A highly corrosive and degenerative liquid constantly seeps from the eye and mouth holes of SCP-035. Anything coming into contact with this substance slowly decays over a period of time, depending on the material, until it is decayed completely into a pool of the original contaminant. Glass seems to react the slowest to the effects of the item, hence the construction choice of its immediate container. Living organisms that come into contact with the substance react much the same way, with no chance of recovery. Origin of the liquid is unknown. Liquid is only visible from the front and does not emerge or is even visible from the other side. Subjects within 1.5 to 2 meters, 5 or 6 feet of SCP-035 or in visual contact with it, experience a strong urge to put it on. When SCP-035 is placed on the face of an individual, an alternate brainwave pattern from SCP-035 overlaps that of the original host, effectively snuffing it out and causing brain death to the subject. Subject then claims to be the consciousness contained within SCP-035. The bodies of possessed subjects decay at a highly accelerated rate, eventually becoming little more than mummified corpses. Nevertheless, SCP-035 has demonstrated the ability to remain in cognitive control of a body, experiencing severe structural damage, even if the subject's body literally decays to the point where motion is not mechanically possible. No effect is found to be had when placed on the face of an animal. Conversations with SCP-035 have proven to be informative. Researchers have learned various details about other SCP objects and history in general, as SCP-035 claims to have been at many momentous events. SCP-035 displays a highly intelligent and charismatic personality, being both amiable and flattering to all those who speak with it. SCP-035 has scored in the 99th percentile on all intelligence and aptitude tests administered to it and appears to have a photographic memory. However, psychological analysis has discovered SCP-035 to possess a highly manipulative nature, capable of forcing sudden and profound changes to interviewer's psychological state. SCP-035 has proven to be highly sadistic, prompting some to commit suicide and transforming others into near-mindless servants with linguistic persuasion alone. SCP-035 has stated that it has intimate knowledge of the workings of the human mind and implied that it could change anyone's views if given enough time. Additional Notes SCP-035 was found in a sealed crypt in an abandoned house in Venice in 18- Addendum 035-01 SCP-035 has been found to be able to possess anything that has a humanoid shape, including mannequins, corpses, and statues. SCP-035 has been able to motivate all into movement, removing the need to expose live subjects to SCP-035. Still, anything it possesses inevitably decays into motionlessness. Addendum 035-02 SCP-035 has facilitated an escape attempt, convincing several of the research staff to aid it in its bid for freedom. Insurrection failed. All staff that have been in contact with SCP-035 have been terminated, and mandatory psychiatric evaluations have been implemented, for all personnel coming in contact with SCP-035. Addendum 035-03 It has been determined that SCP-035 is capable of telepathy, whether or not it possesses a host, even penetrating to the subconscious of others, and using the knowledge it finds to its advantage. Extreme caution is advised when choosing subjects to converse with SCP-035. Addendum 035-04 SCP-035 has expressed an interest in other SCPs, most notably SCP-4715 and SCP-682. Dr. R. R. has expressed worry that should SCP-035 bond with either, their regenerative qualities would negate its corruption and give it a permanent host. Addendum 035-05 After several more escape attempts, and after reviewing SCP-035's incident record, High Command has ordered that it be permanently sealed within the facility, and prohibited from being allowed any more hosts. Several personnel have protested against this, with some even erupting into violence. As a direct result, all personnel that have come into contact with SCP-035 have been terminated. Going forward, all personnel that deal with SCP-035 are to be rotated frequently, and contact is to be limited even to its dormant state to as little as possible. Addendum 035-06 Personnel within 10 meters of SCP-035 have recently reported feeling unease, stating that they can hear an intelligible whispering. Several others have suffered from severe migraines. Object has been monitored, but there is no change in its dormant behavior, and no sounds have been recorded. The motion to reinstate SCP-035's host privileges has been brought up once more, if only on a temporary basis, to discover these new changes in the object's behavior. Denied. Addendum 035-07 The walls of SCP-035's containment cell have suddenly begun secreting a black substance. Tests on the substance have revealed it to be human blood, although highly contaminated with several foreign and unknown agents. Substance is corrosive, having a pH balance of 4.5, and prolonged exposure to the walls has proven to be detrimental to their structural integrity. More notably, it seems to be forming patterns on the walls. Several segments seem to be paragraphs in various languages, including Italian, Latin, Greek, and Sanskrit. Translation is pending. Other segments appear to be diagrams depicting ritualistic sacrifice and mutilation, often for the arcane benefit of the person committing them. Several staff members have been shocked to note that all of the sacrifices bear an uncanny resemblance to various personnel and their loved ones, often in conflicting positions. Researchers while in the room examining these newly formed patterns have complained of hearing loud whispering and high-pitched, unnerving laughter at irregular intervals. Personnel in the section working daily near and around SCP-035's containment unit have suffered catastrophic morale damage, with an all-time high in suicide rates and staff in that area, whether or not they have ever had contact with SCP-035. The only change in SCP-035's dormant behavior is regarding its contained glass case. Degradation of the case has increased to a high degree, enough so that the glass will occasionally shatter, causing a wide dispersal of SCP-035's contaminant. This occurs quite often at the most inopportune times, so far resulting in six casualties and three fatalities of both research and cleanup staff. Addendum 035-08 In light of the mass suicide and homicide of the members of the research team tasked with translating the passages garnered from SCP-035's containment cell, the morale damage in the area, and general loss of staff dealing with SCP-035 to either death or insanity, it has been decided to coat the inner and outer walls of its containment cell with SCP-148, which has proved well in the containment of SCP-132, in order to hopefully block out the high levels of negativity being emitted by SCP-035. Addendum 035-09 The use of SCP-148 has worked well, causing morale and suicide rates to return to near pre-SCP-035 rates. However, the material appears to facilitate the negativity within the cell, causing a veritable greenhouse effect inside. Personnel inside the cell have stated that they feel a heavy sense of dread, fear, anger, and general depression, as well as hearing constant, nearly inaudible whispering upon immediate entry.  Exposure of more than three hours inevitably results in the subject falling into a deep psychosis and attempting to harm either themselves or others. Most spoke in Latin or Greek despite the fact that several did not previously know how to speak said languages beforehand. The presence of blood in both word and diagram formations has increased disproportionately, the walls becoming cluttered, and the formations beginning to overlap each other. The substance has proven to be both difficult to clean and even more corrosive than was originally recorded, with a pH of roughly 2.4. General estimation gives the current walls a life of two months before they will need replacement. It is becoming gradually more and more difficult to contain SCP-035 and the debate to reinstate its host privileges has once again come up, denied. Addendum 035-10, the walls, ceiling, and floor of SCP-035's containment cell have now been completely saturated in blood. All personnel entering and guarding the area must wear full hazmat protection suits. Constant cleaning efforts are being instated. Addendum 035-11, the magnitude, intensity, and recurrence of the phenomena that occur within SCP-035's containment cell have increased to an alarming degree. The cell door has been known to become locked of its own accord while personnel are inside and unable to be opened for a period of time. Appendages form out of the larger puddles of blood and often attempt to grab or harm personnel near them. Blurry apparitions have started appearing to staff. Electronic devices no longer work inside the cell and the light cannot be turned on, though there is no physical reason why it does not work, forcing those entering to use non-electric-based light sources. Cleaning measures are having no discernible effect on the cell and the walls are degrading at a very high rate, forcing them to be replaced within a week at best, although the blood makes it nearly impossible to properly achieve this. SCP-035 may have to be moved to a new cell entirely, with the old ones sealed off and disengaged from the rest of the facility. Item number, SCP-154. Object Class, Euclid. Special Containment Procedures. SCP-154 is to be kept within Weapon Locker 8, an armed research Site 47. Personnel wishing to research or use item must submit the required request forms. Anyone attempting to remove the item without clearance or from outside the facility is to be terminated on site. Description. SCP-154 is a pair of simple bronze bracelets, completely circular and large enough to comfortably hang off the arm of most people. Spectrograph analysis has proven that the item is composed entirely of copper, 85%, tin, 11%, arsenic, 3%, and traces of other slight impurities, less than 1%. When both bracelets are worn on the same arm, and the wearer concentrates on them with arms extended in a depiction of a traditional, knocked bowstring pose, achieved by having the arm with the bracelets completely extended in front of one's self, with the opposing arm extended up to the elbow of the fully extended arm. A large, indistinct, incorporeal bow will form in the extended hand, and both bracelets will glow slightly. From that point onwards, SCP-154 can be treated as a bow until the pose or concentration is broken, which results in the bracelets reverting to normal. There is no actual bowstring, but completing the motion of pulling it achieves the same effect. When the bowstring is pulled and released, the bones of the arm will be forcibly ejected from the extended limb, traveling in a straight path at speeds recorded over 300 meters per second. The missing bones and resulting damage to the arm are quickly regenerated, and the weapon is capable of being fired again within minutes. Tests using subjects possessing multiple arms and hands, such as SCP-1884-B, have demonstrated the ability to fire SCP-154 several times, with the bones of different arms being used with each successive firing. The regeneration implemented by the item is limited, only affecting the damage inflicted by the weapon itself. This regeneration seems to be in automatic action, and will continue in almost all situations. Both firing the weapon and the resulting regeneration are understandably painful, and participants which have used the item once are generally disinclined to repeat usage. However, there have been found to be some occasional abnormalities regarding the regeneration. Most often this manifests simply as minor mutations of the original subject, such as changes in size, pigmentation, and structure of the original organelles. These are an uncommon occurrence, capable of happening during any use of the weapon, though generally tend to occur during repeat usage. There are more drastic abnormalities, though these are much rarer, and coincide with highly frequent use. These mutations can range from anything such as the growth of extra joints and digits in the affected arm, to a complete change of the chemical or physical structure of the limb. One test subject unknowingly had the bone matter within his arm converted into an unstable explosive compound, only discovering the fact when it detonated, causing two fatalities and three casualties. Another had the entire bone and musculature structure morphed into fully functional serpentine physiology.