The Governing Board of the International
Energy Agency (IEA) this week confirmed the appointment of Dr. Fatih Birol
as the next Executive Director of the Agency. He will succeed Ms. Maria van der
Hoeven, who will complete her four-year term on August 31, 2015.
This marks
one of the rare occasions that the head of an international organisation has
been selected from within its ranks. Renowned in the energy field, Dr.
Birol joined the IEA in 1995 and has risen to now hold the positions of Chief
Economist and Director of Global Energy Economics.
In this
role, he oversees the IEA’s flagship
World Energy Outlook
publication, which is recognised as the most authoritative source of
strategic analysis of global energy markets. He is also the founder and
chair of the IEA Energy
Business Council, which provides a forum to enhance co-operation between
the energy industry and energy policy makers.
Earlier in his career, Dr. Birol served in the Secretariat
of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Vienna, an
experience which gives him a unique perspective on the producer-consumer
relationship.
He has also
been a member of the UN Secretary-General’s
High-Level Group on Sustainable
Energy for All
and
was named by Forbes magazine among the most influential people on the world’s
energy scene.
A Turkish
citizen, Dr. Fatih Birol was born in Ankara in 1958. He earned a BSc
degree in power engineering from the Technical University of Istanbul. He
received his MSc and PhD in energy economics from the Technical University of
Vienna. He is an honorary life member of Galatasaray Football Club.