{"id":250,"date":"2016-11-09T10:46:19","date_gmt":"2016-11-09T10:46:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/euromenaenergy.com\/?p=250"},"modified":"2016-11-09T10:46:19","modified_gmt":"2016-11-09T10:46:19","slug":"expert-says-mediterranean-gas-can-fuel-both-economic-recovery-and-lasting-peace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/?p=250","title":{"rendered":"Expert says Mediterranean gas can fuel both economic recovery and lasting peace"},"content":{"rendered":"

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ATHENS, Greece: Transforming the Mediterranean region into a major oil and gas hub is the surest route to a \u201cnew era of peace and prosperity\u201d, an energy industry veteran told a high-profile conference in Athens on Thursday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t yet know exactly how much is down there or how much of it can be recovered, only that the scale is nothing less than historic,\u201d said Roudi Baroudi, CEO of Qatar-based Energy and Environment Holding (EEH), an independent consultancy. \u201cThe potential is so vast that the regional oil and gas play already has new horizons stretching from 2020 and 2030 to 2050 and even beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baroudi made the remarks on the opening day of the European Union-Arab World Summit, a two-day gathering in the Greek capital that has attracted what one observer called a \u201cstar-studded cast\u201d of leaders from the public and private sectors. Several of these officials addressed the opening ceremonies, including Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos, and cabinet ministers from each of Jordan, Palestine, and Qatar, Governor of the Central Bank of Greece,\u00a0 the Chairman of the E.U Military Committee and other officials.<\/p>\n

Speaking on a panel titled \u201cBuilding a new potential in Energy\u201d, Baroudi noted that more and more studies were pointing to \u201cmultiple world-class deposits of natural gas, along with considerable amounts of crude\u201d. This \u201cbounty\u201d could \u201ctransform entire economies and even entire societies by allowing unprecedented investments in education, healthcare, transportation, and other public services and infrastructure,\u201d he said, predicting that \u201cnearby consumer nations will also derive game-changing benefits, including lower costs, greater economic competitiveness, and vastly improved energy security.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also lauded the event for bringing together the right mix of experts and decision-makers, saying the level of participation \u201cshould give us all cause for optimism.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cChange is a fickle phenomenon: it richly rewards those who are prepared to adapt, but it also tends to severely punish those who lack the necessary knowledge, vision, and determination,\u201d said Baroudi, who has worked in the industry for more than 35 years, advising national governments, the European Commission, and the United Nations on energy policy. \u201cWhen I see here in Athens, judging from both the quantity and the quality of participation, tells me that the right people in Europe and the Arab region are right where they need to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also noted positive news in Lebanon, which this week ended a two-and-a-half-year political crisis by electing former Army Commander Michel Aoun as its new president, reviving hopes that the troubled country can now focus on developing its offshore and onshore energy resources.<\/p>\n

More broadly, he said, developing the Eastern Med\u2019s energy resources would go a long way toward realizing the dream of greater integration between Europe and its Arab neighbors, opening the way for lasting stability and a durable peace supported by \u201cco-dependence\u201d. He also stressed that Mediterranean gas would supplement \u2013 not compete with \u2013 gas from Russia, which is currently Europe\u2019s top supplier, providing flexibility that would help producer and consumer nations alike.<\/p>\n

\u201cNowhere will this be more important than in the European Union, the world\u2019s largest energy market,\u201d Baroudi told his audience. \u201cThe advent of a distinctively new flow trajectory \u2013 much of it from sources within the EU\u2019s own borders and\/or subject to EU safety and environmental standards \u2013 would dramatically improve Europe\u2019s security of supply, put downward pressure on prices, reduce household energy costs, and breathe new life into energy-intensive industries like electricity, manufacturing and transport.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the ingredients are in place\u201d for an energy-based peace that leads to full resolution of conflicts among the countries of the Mediterranean, he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe question is no longer one of \u2018IF\u2019: all that remains to be seen is \u2018WHEN,\u201d Baroudi asserted. \u201cAnd that, my friends, depends largely on us \u2013 on how fully we recognize the opportunity, how swiftly we move to start the process, and how responsibly we carry it out.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ATHENS, Greece: Transforming the Mediterranean region into a major oil and gas hub is the surest route to a \u201cnew era of peace and prosperity\u201d, an energy industry veteran told a high-profile…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=250"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=250"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emimer.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}