“Can’t they just Get Along?”
The Gulf Cooperation Council held an Unconventional Gas Symposium in early October. While experts claim that the region contains 2500 TCF of potential shale gas, outsiders bemoan the lack of expertise, water (necessary for fracking), infrastructure (day rates for rigs are triple the US), and price/economics (incremental gas prices are 3x the social contract). In short, it’s going to be a long time before new gas is economic in the region. If only members would settle centuries-old disagreements, just ‘get along’ and agree to a regional grid and buy gas from Qatar/Iran, the only surplus reserves in the region? What to watch – Bahrain claims that negotiations to develop a pipeline to import Qatari gas are ongoing/constructive. Bahrain doesn’t do what neighbor Saudi Arabia doesn’t allow, and Big Brother, increasingly short of cheap gas, has been an obstacle to a regional gas grid.