Peace Obi
The UAE Minister of Energy and Industry, H.E. Suhail Al Mazrouei, has won the International Oil Diplomacy Person of the Year 2018 award. The award was presented to Mazrouei in London today (Thursday) at the Energy Institute’s International Petroleum (IP) Week. This prestigious accolade was awarded last year to H.E. Khali Al-Falih, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Energy, Industry and Minerals.
Presenting the award, the Chief Executive Officer Energy Institute, Louise Kingham OBE FEI said, “As President of the OPEC Conference, you have shown exemplary vision and leadership through 2018 with your stewardship of the continued implementation of the “historical” agreement to seek oil market stability among some 25 OPEC and non-OPEC countries to the benefit of producing and consuming nations alike.”
The Energy Institute in a letter in support of Mazrouei’s nomination noted that Mazrouei as Minister of Energy and Industry for the United Arab Emirates assumed a global leadership position among hydrocarbon-rich nations in steering the Middle East away from fuel subsidies. Adding that that step tackled the unsustainable consumption patterns to ensure that UAE and others are aligned with the international community’s efforts in overcoming the challenges of climate change in support of the Paris Agreement, the Energy Institute stated in its Letter of Award.
In his response, Mazrouei who has been the UAE Minister of Energy and Industry since 2013, said he was “humbled and honoured” to receive the accolade. Under the auspices of the Energy Institute’s International Petroleum Week, HE Suhail al-Mazrouei was nominated by Gulf Intelligence, the EI’s Middle East knowledge partner, and supported by the Energy Institute Council, as this year’s Winner of The International Oil Diplomacy Person of the Year Award2018.
He was honoured among other achievements for his outstanding role towards the rebalancing of the oil market in 2017 through 2018. Also, in December 2018, OPEC and non-OPEC producers agreed to reduce oil output jointly by 1.2 million barrels a day through to June 2019. This followed two years of cuts of 1.8 million b/d, which witnessed average compliance rates of 100% across the group in a historical demonstration of cooperation among producers to tackle a global glut in oil inventories and collapsing prices.
“The efforts by the UAE Minister of Energy in his role as OPEC President contributed significantly to oil prices recovering through the year to average above $70 a barrel in 2018, after hovering around $55 in 2017,” said Sean Evers, Managing Partner, Gulf Intelligence. “His diplomatic skills were critical in a year when the fabric of the OPEC+25 countries could have frayed and fallen apart,” he said.
The Energy Institute is the largest Royal Charter international professional membership organisation and learned society concerned solely with energy, with Her Majesty the Queen as its Patron.
IP Week is recognised as one of the major international oil and gas events, where senior leaders, policymakers and academics gather to share, learn and shape the future direction of the industry. IP Week has an international appeal, attracting delegates from over 50 countries and it is one of the major events in the global oil and gas industry’s calendar.
Be the first to know when we publish an update
