This article was written in May for the June edition of Executive Magazine.
The third well drilled in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) failed to reveal commercially exploitable natural gas reserves. Italian multinational Eni’s Saipem 1000 drillship drilled to …
Cyprus: Exploration on hold, attention turns to developing Aphrodite Read More »
Special Envoy for international Energy Affairs at the State Department Amos Hochstein visited Beirut on July 1-2, 2015, where he held a series of meetings with Lebanese officials in a bid to revive efforts to settle the maritime border dispute …
Amos Hochstein’s visit to Beirut: Reviving U.S. mediation efforts Read More »
Troubled relations with Turkey have deepened the relations between three Eastern Mediterranean countries, Egypt, Cyprus and Greece. A fourth, Israel, is never too far off, with a now well-established Israel-Cyprus-Greece entente in parallel. Even if just for the image, Egypt …
Eastern Mediterranean alliances: How robust are they? Read More »
The second edition of the Oil & Gas – Lebanon’s National Wealth Forum, organized by “Front Page Communication” in collaboration with the Forum for Dialogue, was held on June 08, 2015 at the ESA Campus. This year’s focus was …
Lebanon’s National Wealth Forum: Suggestions to advance the debate Read More »
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu formed his government on 06/05, with the slimmest of majorities (61 MKs out of a total of 120). His cabinet was sworn in on 14/05. The Energy portfolio went to Yuval Steinitz, a member of …
The new Israeli cabinet: What impact on energy policy? Read More »
Despite the political deadlock, which has put the oil and gas file on hold for long months, the second edition of the Oil & Gas – Lebanon’s National Wealth Forum, which will be held at the ESA campus in …
Oil & Gas – Lebanon’s National Wealth Forum, June 08, 2015 Read More »
The oil and gas file might be on hold at the political level and suffering from the prevailing deadlock, but civil society is booming with initiatives addressing the possible development of an oil and gas industry. Governance is acknowledged as …
Addressing transparency in Lebanon’s oil and gas sector Read More »
The decline in global oil prices continues to weigh on oil and gas companies. Despite modest gains, analysts seem to agree that triple-digit prices are not expected on the short to medium terms, bar a major catastrophe. This has forced …
Eastern Mediterranean: Companies feel the impact of declining oil prices Read More »
Since 2010, policymakers in Israel have had to repeatedly intervene in the energy sector to deal with challenges — not just opportunities — presented by the discovery of large gas fields.
In December 2014, Israel’s antitrust commissioner David Gilo revoked …
While the political deadlock continues to present the greatest obstacle to Lebanon’s oil and gas sector, with no tangible progress on the missing legislation required to proceed with the first licensing round, Lebanese officials, and the private sector, seem unaffected …
Lebanon: Political deadlock blocking offshore tender but not business prospecting Read More »
Energy deals featured high on the conference agenda, with an obvious preference for upstream activity and power generation. Reducing the debt it owns foreign companies and cutting down subsidies by about a third (with a view to phasing them out …
Egypt: Billions pledged for the energy sector at the Economic Development Conference Read More »
Economic diplomacy is a largely neglected concept in Lebanon, although the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gebran Bassil, has made it one of his focus themes since his appointment in February 2014, with regular emphasis on promoting investments in the emerging …
Economic diplomacy at the service of the energy sector: The cases of Lebanon and Cyprus Read More »