Natural Gas Europe was pleased to have the opportunity to speak with Mr. Roudi Baroudi on developments in Lebanon's natural gas. In 2000, Mr. Baroudi was elected secretary general of the World Energy Council (Conseil Mondial de L’Energie) – Lebanon Member Committee where he served until January 2013. He is also amember of the Association Française des Techniciens et Professionnels du Pétrole – (French Association of Petroleum Professional & Technical Experts). Mr. Baroudi is a former senior adviser to the Arab Electricity Regulatory Forum – (AREF), member of the Energy Institute, (U.K.), and a member of the International Association for Energy Economics (IAEE) in the US and is founding member in establishing the REMEP (Rome Euro-Mediterranean Energy Platform) issued by the Euro-Med Energy Ministers in Rome in 2003.
Recent explorations indicated the strong likelihood of large amounts of gas offshore Lebanon.Spectrum Geo estimates the deposit at about 25 trillion cubic feet and discoveries in neighboring countries also encourage that fact. Lebanon has been trying to catch up, well behind in the race for gas. It has appointed its Petroleum Administration Authority and approved the Decree on the Pre-qualification of Companies to participate in the Petroleum Activities Licensing Round.