European Gas Conference Returns to Vienna as Industry Faces Significant Developments

Vienna, Austria, November 22, 2012 --(PR.com)-- More than 300 industry leaders will gather for the annual European Gas Conference in Vienna in January as the industry faces significant developments. European Gas Conference programme director Monika Simões says the event will focus on the future of the European and global gas industry with regards to demand and supply dynamics, concrete commercial solutions and opportunities and regulatory and policy changes.

Leading industry voices
The European Gas Conference has become the industry’s annual must-attend event and delegates will have the unique opportunity to gain crucial insights into market developments because the who’s who in the gas industry is in the same room, from the gas majors to pipeline operators, TSOs, financiers and regulators.

Monika Simões says: “Energy security is also a critical topic this year and we look forward to hearing about our expert speakers’ plans of how Europe’s high energy import dependence can be tackled through diversification of sources, LNG and domestic production. The first day of the conference has a specific focus on LNG, looking at strategy, technology and commercial opportunities.”

Discussions will focus on:
- Diversification of sources – pipeline project advances, development of indigenous resources and LNG, which increasingly connects global markets.
- European – Russian relations and a progress report from the Gas Advisory Council: development of gas markets and recommendations for the long-term EU-Russia gas cooperation.
- The future of European gas – what place will natural gas take in the European energy mix, how will gas prices impact the market and what will this mean to the industry players?

Confirmed speaker highlights at the European Gas Conference:
· Hans-Peter Floren, Member of the Executive Board Gas & Power, OMV Aktiengesellschaft
· Philip Lowe, Director General Energy, Europan Commission
· Rune Bjornson, Senior Vice President Natural Gas, Statoil
· Harald Stindl, Managing Director, Gas Connect Austria GmbH
· Hilmar Kroat-Reder, Executive Committee Member Gas & Power, Petrol Ofisi
· Hiroshi Kondo, General Manager Paris Office, Tokyo Gas
· Gottfried Steiner, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Executive Board of CEGH AG, Central European Gas Hub AG (CEGH)
· Reinhard Mitschek, Managing Director, Nabucco
· Walter Boltz, Executive Director, E-Control and Vice-Chairman, Board of Regulators, Agency for Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER)
· Gulmira Rzayeva, Research Fellow, Center for Strategic Studies under the President of Azerbaijan
· François-Régis Mouton, Delegate for European Affairs E&P and Trading, TOTAL and Chairman, GASNATURALLY

Event dates and location:
Day 1: 29 January 2013: LNG Focus Day
Day 2-3: 30-31 January 2013: Conference days
Day 4: 1 February 2013: Post-conference master class
Location: Vienna, Austria