Maghreb Roundtable: The Geopolitics of North African Energy Trends

January 30, 2014 • 12:00 – 2:00 pm EST

Declining production, rising domestic consumption, and insecurity are huge challenges for energy producers in North Africa, according to Leonardo Bellodi and Arezki Daoud. Bellodi is executive vice president of government and regulatory affairs at the Italian energy company Eni SpA, and Daoud is the editor of The North Africa Journal. The two spoke at a Maghreb Roundtable entitled “The Geopolitics of North African Energy Trends” at CSIS on January 30, 2014. Bellodi highlighted the risks and difficulties foreign firms face in Libya and Algeria, but he affirmed optimistically that European companies will remain engaged in North Africa despite the risks. Daoud discussed Maghreb countries’ fiscal and policy outlooks, arguing that political concerns and crisis management, more often than sober economic analysis, drive policymakers’ decisions.

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Haim Malka

Haim Malka

Former Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Middle East Program