MENA nations plan Doha conference

11th Power-Gen event is from February 4 to 6 Abu Dhabi - Jamal Al Majaida The Middle East and North African (MENA) countries are expected to pump nearly $250 billion into power projects over the next five years, to expand generation capacity and meet the growing domestic demands. The projects will be one of the main topics of discussion at the 11th Power-Gen Middle East conference, to be held in Doha, Qatar. Several top officials and experts from the Gulf and other countries will attend the annual event. Organisers said that nearly 200 power projects are on the agenda for the conference between February 4 and 6, which will also look at new technologies and other power-related issues. "Significant energy-related projects as part of the 200 planned and announced ventures valued between $100 million and $20 billion will be major points of discussion at Power-Gen in Doha,” said the PennWell Corporation, which is organising the event. "A total of $250 billion is expected to be pumped into the power sector in the MENA region over the next five years to meet regional electricity demands," according to a well-informed sources. The statement gave no breakdown for the investments but according to an official Arab group, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are expected to pump more than $63 billion into electricity projects over the next five years, to expand their power generation capacity and meet growing domestic demand. The six countries, which control 40 percent of the world’s recoverable oil resources, will add nearly half the expected additional power generation capacity in the region, said a study by the Dammam-based Arab Petroleum Investment Corp (Apicorp). The study put investments in power projects at around $63.1 billion in the GCC, $36.8 billion in eastern Arab nations, $21.4 billion in Iran, $14.6 billion in Maghreb Arab countries and nearly $2.3 billion in other Arab nations. It said that as high population growth, record levels of urbanisation, sustained economic growth and pressing needs for air conditioning and sea water desalination has left many countries in the region struggling to meet demand. In a separate study, Apicorp said that the GCC is projected to record the highest power demand growth of around 8.5 percent in the region, in the medium term. It put growth at 7.6 percent in Mashreq (Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria), 7.2 percent in other Arab states, seven percent in Iran and 6.5 percent in Maghreb (Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia). Power-Gen, one of the most important events of its kind in the region, will be held at Qatar's National Convention Centre under the patronage of Dr Mohammed bin Saleh al-Sada, Qatar’s Minister of Energy and Industry. More than 60 distinguished delegates from over 20 countries will speak on a variety of issues. "We expect a very successful event as our esteemed international speakers from the GCC region and around the world present innovative thinking for discussion, debate and deliberation about business, technology and financial challenges required for energy efficient development, investments and partnerships,” said Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen, International Events Director at PennWell Corporation in the Middle East. "We are also delighted to present an unparalleled exhibition that will showcase some of the most innovative technologies and viable, sustainable solutions to meet the region’s growing energy challenges by leading companies."