NEARLY 300 BUSINESSES, government agencies and institutions rented space at Syroil in 2008. This year’s event, from 5-8 April, should attract even more because of Syria’s fast-rising status as the oil and gas crossroads of the eastern Mediterranean.

THE UAE WILL play a pivotal role in sustainable energy projects, spearheading efforts in the Gulf to contribute to the global advancement towards a less carbondependent world, a top official told a regional energy security conference recently. "We are the first country in the Gulf which undertook a leading commitment in producing renewable energy.

THE COMBINED OIL income of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is expected to reach US$1 trillion (Dh3.67 trillion) by 2030 at current oil prices, an energy expert said at an industry conference in Abu Dhabi recently. "The Gulf contains 40 per cent of the worlds proven oil reserves and 23 per cent of its gas reserves," Dr Hesham Al Khateeb, Honorary Vice-Chairman of the World Energy Council, told delegates.

BAHRAIN IS SEEKING to increase its oil production to 250,000 barrels per day over the next seven years, the Gulf nations oil and gas minister Abdul Hussein Mirza said recently. Bahrain currently pumps 33,000 barrels a day of oil from its own field, and plans to raise that to 100,000 barrels a day in seven years after an agreement last month with U.S. oil firm Occidental Petroleum Corp (OXY) and Abu Dhabis Mubadala Development Co, Mirza said.