As Saudi Arabia has grappled with its Vision 2030 reform plan and its transition away from fossil fuels, one international partner of choice in the energy sector has emerged: the United States In recent years, many countries in the Middle East region have concluded that their continued economic dependence on …
Read More »The Dynamics Shaping Global Energy Markets in 2023
After a year of unprecedented turmoil, global energy prices could return to a ‘new normal’ in 2023—or they could be further disrupted by ongoing or new political and economic crises. The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 led to major reverberations in energy markets around the world. In an attempt …
Read More »Iran and China Loom Large in Saudi Arabia’s “Game of Drones”
Driven by its desire for economic gain and the threat posed by Iran, Saudi Arabia has relied heavily on China to develop its domestic drone program—much to Washington’s chagrin. In recent years, many Middle Eastern states have devoted growing sums to research in cutting-edge defense technology—particularly drone warfare, a crucial …
Read More »How the Arash-Dorra Gas Field Could Improve Saudi-Iran Ties
Energy diplomacy and national interest suggest a good opportunity for Iran and Saudi Arabia, each within the framework of its own national interests, to jointly extract oil and gas from this field. Over the past two decades, Iran’s Ministry of Oil had made increasing the production capacity of oil and …
Read More »Russia and the Gulf: Implications for Global Energy Markets and Moscow’s International Isolation
Pressure is growing around the world to cut off international purchases of Russian oil because of the Kremlin’s war of aggression against Ukraine. In recent days, the government of Poland announced its intentions to do just that, in addition to self-embargos on Russian coal and natural gas, before the end …
Read More »Why Gulf States Can (or Cannot) Replace Russian Oil and Gas
Given Europe’s need for Russian natural gas and the lack of easily available alternatives for Russia’s energy resources in the European market in the short term, solutions to political disagreements between Europe and the Middle East are more vital now than ever. Energy flows—imports and exports—constitute a major element of …
Read More »The Middle East needs to draw the right lessons from today’s natural gas crisis
Rising oil prices and the energy crisis have created the conditions for Middle Eastern countries to gradually reduce their dependence on oil and gas exports and focus on a green economy by investing more in the energy transition process. The energy crisis and Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine, along with the outbreak of the …
Read More »The economic and moral challenges of replacing Russian oil
When President Joe Biden announced a U.S. ban on Russian oil and other energy imports last week, he called the sanction a “powerful blow to Putin’s war machine” currently invading Ukraine. But the move means Washington must find alternative sources of crude elsewhere, and its search for new supplies, from …
Read More »Iran’s Petrochemical Development: A Challenge to Saudi Arabia?
Without using the capacity of foreign companies in the Iranian petrochemical industry, the gap between Iran and Saudi Arabia in petrochemical production will increase, and other competitors will also increase their share in the regional and global markets. In recent years, the export of petrochemical products from Iran has made …
Read More »A volatile year ahead for energy markets in the Middle East
Analysis: As the global economy recovers from Covid-19, oil production and prices are expected to surpass pre-pandemic levels. But with changing market dynamics and acceleration towards renewables, the energy market could be in for a volatile year. The economies of energy-producing countries in the Middle East will be heavily reliant …
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