Page 32: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (May/Jun 2013)

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Perspectives

Analysis investment to increase production and make new fnds, Lescoeur says.

OMC – a view from

While countries in Europe will see domestic demand double the Mediterranean between 1990 and 2030, production is expected to increase by barely 20%. Meanwhile, countries to the

By Elaine Maslin consumer to the south. The eastern south, from Turkey to Algeria, will

This year’s OMC conference Mediterranean and East Africa are see demand for energy increase “Charting a course in a changing sea” also opening up new, signifcant gas eight-fold, and production six-fold, attracted more than 560 companies provinces. he says.

T from 30 countries to Ravenna, Italy, Both trends are challenging tra- “This complexity between north for 26 technical sessions and 120 ditional supplier-consumer rela- and south will increase. The pure speakers. But the changing gas mar- tionships, but could also create an producer versus pure consumer ket was on everyone’s mind. opportunity for the Mediterranean, paradigm is no longer valid,” says

US shale gas, EU market lib- OMC attendees heard. Lescoeur.

eralization and the collapse of Bruno Lescoeur, chief executive “One thing is certain: The consumption in Europe Mediterranean basin can be a game have together upended the changer in the EU, if you look at

European region’s stable mar- the recent discoveries in the region ket in gas, ENI chief executive and the change in relationship

Paolo Scaroni told this year’s between producing and consumer

Offshore Mediterranean countries.”

Conference (OMC). ENI already has a signifcant

Gas sales fell 15% in proportion of its upstream business

Europe in 2012 compared to in North Africa – 30% in fact, said 2008, due to the area’s ailing ENI’s Scaroni, both onshore and economy. Meanwhile, the offshore. potential for gas exports from Libya, a member of the the US is looming as a result Organization of Petroleum

Bruno Lescoeur, chief executive, Edison of the country’s unconven- Exporting Countries (OPEC), holds tionals boom. of Italian oil and gas group Edison, the largest proven oil reserves in

And yet, says Scaroni, global gas says: “Exploration and produc- Africa, at 47 billion barrels. prices remain dislocated. tion could be the backbone of the Egypt has large a proved and

For ENI, an integrated E&P and economy in the Mediterranean, producing offshore hydrocarbon marketing company, the result attracting investment. Italy has an system, highlighted by BP’s cur- has been a decision to renegoti- opportunity to play an important rent US$10 billion West Nile Delta ate its contracts with all opera- role.” Project, one of the largest projects in tors, including Norway’s Statoil, Driving increased demand in the the Egyptian offshore basin, due on

Libyan National Oil Corp., Algeria’s south are countries more accus- stream in 2014.

Sonatrach, and Russia’s Gazprom, tomed to exporting their resources: Algeria has an established and by the end of this year, Scaroni says. Algeria, Libya, and Egypt. These signifcant onshore exploration

However, the Mediterranean has countries are now, for various and production industry—a key its own shifting market to contend reasons, starting to struggle to resource for Europe—but it is now with. North Africa, whose govern- meet their own, growing needs also looking offshore to increase its ments and IOCs were out in force (for energy as well as receipts from reserves.

at OMC, is emerging as a growing exports) and are hungry for foreign However, even Scaroni admits the

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