> Energy, climate & environment - on 05/05/2009

Gas Supply Security and Transport to Europe: Which strategy? Which diversification?

Meeting of the Thomas More Institute Brussels, on Tuesday, May 5th, 2009, 6 pm, to the Fondation Universitaire. Speakers : Jean-Marie DEVOS, Eurogas Secretary General (the European Union of the Natural Gas Industry) and Jean-Arnold VINOIS, Head of Unit « Energy policy and security of supply », Directorate General for Energy and Transport at the European Commission. Debate in French.

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Should there exist within the European Union a controversial policy, energy appears as the one in addition to the diversification and the natural gas supply security and transport specifically to Europe.

If the existing gas stocks supplying the European zone are sufficient to meet its needs in the coming decades, can Europe protect itself from dominant positions and their pernicious consequences, whether on the side of gas suppliers and transporters? How to ensure a healthy competition and at the same time avoid bottlenecks and geopolitics pressures? How far can supplies be diversified? For instance, what about Iran and the countries bordering the Caspian sea? What about the -competing ?- projets regarding the transportation of South Stream and Nabucco gas?

It is the well-functionning of the market which is at stake. Could liquefied natural gas be one of the answers to that questioning? Could that gas enable to increase the number of supplying sources at competing prices as opposed to natural gas coming from remote regions? Does the European Union have today an efficient strategy in that arena? Does it have the resources to have one?

We are pleased to invite you to engage in a debate in light of those questions and some additional ones with Jean-Marie DEVOS and Jean-Arnold VINOIS.

The debate will be led by Jean-Pierre SCHAEKEN WILLEMAERS, member of the advisory board at Thomas More Institute.

Laurent VINATIER, Research Associate at Thomas More Institute will expose the preliminary findings of the study currently being conducted in Russia and in Turkey.

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The number of seats is limited. Please note that the deadline for registration is Monday May 4, 2009.

Download below the invitation in PDF (2 pages, in French).

pdf Document