«South East Europe Energy Outlook», IENE’s Major Reference Study Was Presented in Bucharest

Bucharest , Romania’s capital was the venue for the second special event which was organised by the Institute of Energy for South East Europe (IENE) on June 22^nd for the presentation of the major reference study conducted by the Institute, the “South East Europe Energy Outlook ”. The presentation focused on key areas of the study including the investment prospects of the energy sector in the whole SE European region. A selected audience of Romanian policy makers, business executives, energy experts, as well as IENE members and associates and contributors to the study were present in this special IENE event.

The event began with introductory remarks by Prof. Laurentius M. Goia, representative of WEC’s (World Energy Council) Romanian National Committee, who emphasized the role of energy in the development of Romania’s economy and stressed the importance of IENE’s “South East Europe Energy Outlook ” study for the region. A welcome video message by IENE’s Chairman, Dr. John Desypris, followed. The presentation of the study was made by IENE’s Deputy Chairman and Executive Director, Mr. Costis Stambolis, who co-ordinated the project and edited the “South East Europe Energy Outlook ” .

According to the “Outlook” study, the value of energy investments in the region by 2020 is foreseen to exceed 240 billion euros. More specifically, 90 billion euros will be invested in electricity (i.e. new power generation plants, electricity grids, electricity transmission lines, coal and lignite mines), as SE Europe will need an additional 130-140 GW of installed capacity over the next 10 years. Additionally, the investments in RES (excluding energy efficiency) are foreseen to add up to 48 billion euros, while more funds in the region of 15-20 billion are likely to be spent on Energy Efficiency projects.

The main conclusion of the study is that the prospects for energy investments in the whole SE region, are overwhelmingly positive for the coming decade, especially as far as the major countries are concerned (i.e. Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania) with progress in other parts of the region lagging behind.

Apart from electricity, there are significant opportunities in all other energy branches in the SE European countries:

- In natural gas investments in new pipelines, LNG and liquefaction terminals are anticipated to reach 25 billion euros. These investments are to take place mainly in Cyprus and Romania, following the recent discovery of large natural gas offshore deposits. Further investments in the gas sector are also anticipated in Western Balkans, where old infrastructure is being replaced and upgraded.

- The South Corridor pipeline projects for the transmission of natural gas from Central Asia and the Caspian to Europe are of major geopolitical importance for the region. The respective investments are estimated to reach 20 billion euros.

- The investments in hydrocarbon exploration are anticipated to amount up to 35 billion euros until 2020 and several projects are already underway in Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Greece.

- Investments in refining are expected to come up to 23 billion euros until 2020.

IENE’s presentation event in Bucharest was concluded with a panel discussion with the participation of Prof. Laurentius M. Goia, Ms. Dana Duica, Executive Director of the Romanian Wind Energy Association, Mr. Michail Sotiriou, President of the Hellenic-Romanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Mr. George Ftikas, Lawyer, Representative of KLC Law Firm in Sofia and Bucharest.

The sponsor of this IENE event was KLC Law Firm, while the “Outlook” Study sponsors and supporters included PPC SA, Sencap A.E., EGL, DEPA SA, Hellenic Gas Transmission Operator SA (DESFA), Terna Energy SA and Protergia SA.