CHINA’S “ONE BELT – ONE ROAD” MEGA-PROJECT WILL BOOST EURASIAN NATURAL GAS OPPORTUNITIES

Natural Gas Europe
June 29th, 2015
By Ariel Cohen

The efforts of China to ensure its economic development and preeminence include the creation of the “New Silk Road” – the enormous system of infrastructure mega-projects to stretch from the Pacific to the Atlantic. If completed, it will be the largest infrastructure undertaking ever built. Natural gas features prominently in the plan.

Beyond Oil and Gas: Kazakhstan Bets its Future on Reform

Natural Gas Europe
June 08, 2015
By Dr. Ariel Cohen

Recent events in Ukraine and Russia’s anti-Western rhetoric and military posture force European energy consumers to look for alternatives for Russian hydrocarbons. One of the possible suppliers of both oil and gas could be Kazakhstan, which boast the largest hydrocarbon resources in the oil-rich Caspian basin.

SYSTEMIC VIOLENCE THREATENS MIDDLE EAST OIL OUTLOOK

The Atlantic Council
June 03, 2015
By Dr. Ariel Cohen

When oil ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meet in Vienna on June 5, they’ll face a strategic dilemma. Political instability in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is discouraging capital investment in local oil and gas projects, and shifting interest to North Americanshale—despite MENA’s cheap, abundant and easy-to-extract hydrocarbon resources (see graphs below). Although the current oil slump has hurt investment worldwide, the recovery period appears to favor investment in North America, the Caspian, and Africa at OPEC’s expense.