The Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali bin Ibrahim Al-Naimi delivered today a speech at the Seminar on Future of Energy in the Middle East and North Africa organized by Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) in Manama, Bahrain. Following is the text of the speech: I would like, at the outset, to thank the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain and HE the Minister of Energy Dr. Abdul hussain bin Ali Mirza for the warm reception and gracious hospitality. I would also like to thank Dr. Abid ibn Abdullah Al-Saadoun, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), for inviting me to participate in APICORP's annual seminar that tackles several topics of particular importance, including the future of energy in the Arab world. With its huge discovered and undiscovered reserves, the Arab world is a major player in global oil production and consumption. Arab countries need to invest in the various stages of the oil industry, especially since these countries, whether oil-producing or non-oil-producing, are all in need of energy sources to fuel the continued economic growth and provide the basic needs of life. The Arab world consumes about nine million barrels of oil per day, almost 10% of the total global consumption. At a time when some Arab countries are experiencing political unrest, joint Arab action in economic fields, particularly in the field of oil, assumes much greater importance, since the Arab world has more than 56% of the world's proven oil reserves and more than 27% of the world's natural gas reserves. These reserves are expected to rise over the coming years with new discoveries and improved technologies that help increase recoverable oil volumes. As you know, the economies of all Arab countries, including non-oil-producing countries, are closely interconnected in various areas such as trade, investment, tourism, and the movement of labor, which means that these economies are correlated to oil and gas production and price levels. This correlation is expected to continue for several decades, bringing into focus the importance of the development, as well as the vertical and horizontal expansion, of the oil industry, including the continuation of new oil discoveries. This requires the development of appropriate financing solutions that would maintain and raise the level of production and increase oil reserves. The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) was established in the early 1970's to support the financing solution system backing the development of the Arab energy sector. As an Arab entity that supports this vital sector, APICORP started operation in 1975 by providing various financing solutions to the sector's investors. As you know, energy sources, most notably oil and gas, are among the fundamentals of modern global economy.In addition to their various uses as a source of energy, oil and gas are also used as feedstock for the manufacturing of hundreds of essential and luxury end-products that are part of modern life. They provide, on the one hand, energy for transportation, refrigeration, heating, power generation, agriculture, industry, and many other areas; and are used, on the other hand, as feedstock for intermediate and downstream industries, such as clothing, cars, and even food. --More 13:17 LOCAL TIME 10:17 GMT تغريد
