When

Wed, May 21, 2008
7:30 am - 4 pm
(GMT-05:00) America/Chicago

Where

James A. Baker III Hall

The international community is facing the most difficult energy market it has seen in the past two decades. Oil prices have experienced record swings, oil capacity surpluses have disappeared across the operational chain, and significant gains in demand are being driven by the expanding economies of the developing world. In the short term, security of existing supplies remains a key challenge to global energy markets.

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In the Middle East, exporters face greater risks from terrorist attacks following al-Qaida"s 2004 call for attacks on regional oil facilities and infrastructure. Risks to navigation through the Strait of Hormuz have also risen in recent years following an increase in sea-based terror attacks and mounting international tensions with Iran over its nuclear program. Unfettered access to Russia"s energy supply has also become more problematic following the Kremlin's reorganization of the country's energy industry under President Vladimir Putin. And, in many countries in Africa and South America, civil unrest, heavy government interference in the energy sector, bureaucratic inefficiency and corruption are hindering the development of oil supplies and, in some cases, have disrupted immediate exports.

The Baker Institute conference "The Global Energy Market: Comprehensive Strategies to Meet Geopolitical and Financial Risks" brings together senior policymakers, economists, academic specialists and industry professionals to discuss the geopolitical risks currently facing international energy markets and the global financial system. At the conference, the Baker Institute will also release a new energy study by the same title. The study investigates the consequences that current geopolitical risks could pose to energy security, pricing and supply, as well as to the transparent and smooth operation of the global market for oil and natural gas trade and investment. By analyzing these key geopolitical threats in depth, the study identifies a series of policy frameworks that can be used to fortify the current market system and ensure that it can respond flexibly to the array of threats that might be encountered in the coming years. The study also examines the impact of emerging climate policy on future U.S. foreign and national energy policy.

The research and event is cosponsored by the Baker Institute Energy Forum and the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan.

 

PDF iconClick here to see the event program 

 

Event Agenda and Presentations

Opening Keynote Addresses

Welcoming Remarks by the Honorable Edward P. Djerejian, Founding Director, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, Rice University

Shell Distinguished Lecture Series Keynote Speaker:
"The U.S. Economy, Financial Markets and the Price of Oil"
Martin Feldstein, D. Phil., George F. Baker Professor of Economics, Harvard University, and President and Chief Executive Officer, National Bureau of Economic Research

"Sources of Instability In the Middle East"
Thomas Fingar, Ph.D., Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Analysis and Chairman, National Intelligence Council

PDF icon"International Energy Policy and American Diplomatic Engagement"
The Honorable Reuben Jeffery III, Under Secretary, Economic, Energy and Agricultural Affairs and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs, U.S. Department of State

10:00 am Morning Session I - Geopolitical Risks to the Global Energy Market

PDF icon"Overview of the Study"
Amy Myers Jaffe
Wallace S. Wilson Fellow in Energy Studies, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy

PDF icon"Oil, the Dollar and Financial Markets"
Mahmoud Amin El-Gamal, Ph.D., Rice Scholar, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and Professor of Economics, Rice University

11:00 am Break

11:15 am Morning Session II - Geopolitical Risks to the Global Energy Market (continued)

PDF icon"Russian Roulette: Risk Scenarios for Russian Gas"
Kenneth B. Medlock III, Ph.D., Fellow in Energy Studies, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Economics, Rice University
Peter R. Hartley, Ph.D., Rice Scholar, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and
George and Cynthia Mitchell Chair and Professor of Economics, Rice University

"Iran and the Nuclear Standoff"
Daniel Brumberg, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Government, Georgetown University, and Acting Director, United States Institute of Peace Muslim World Initiative,
Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention

"Oil and Terrorism"
David Cook, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Rice University

12:30 pm Lunch
Grand Hall, Rice Memorial Center

2:00 pm Afternoon Session I - Energy Security and Resource Conflict

PDF icon"Resource Nationalism: The Case of Bolivia"
David R. Mares, Ph.D., Baker Institute Scholar for Energy Studies, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego

PDF icon"Iraq and Oil Wars"
Yahia Said, Director for the Middle East and North Africa, and Senior Advisor, Revenue Watch Institute, and Research Officer, Centre for the Study of Global Governance,
London School of Economics and Political Science

PDF icon"Militarization of Energy"
James A. Russell, Co-Director, Center for Contemporary Conflict, and Senior Lecturer, Department of National Security Affairs, Naval Postgraduate School

PDF icon"Market Solutions: Why Militarization is Unlikely"
Ronald Soligo, Ph.D., Rice Scholar, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and
Professor of Economics, Rice University

PDF icon "China and Economic Levers"
Richard J. Stoll, Ph.D., Rice Scholar, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, and
Professor of Political Science, Rice University

3:45 pm Break

4:00 pm Afternoon Session II - Energy and U.S. Foreign Policy

"U.S.-Iranian Relations: Nuclear Aspirations and Other Issues"
Daniel Brumberg, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Government, Georgetown University, and Acting Director, United States Institute of Peace Muslim World Initiative,
Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention

PDF icon "U.S. Foreign Policy and Climate Change"
Matthew E. Chen, Energy Research Associate, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy
Joe Barnes, Bonner Means Baker Fellow, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy

"U.S. and Joint Oil Consuming Country Strategies"
Amy Myers Jaffe, Wallace S. Wilson Fellow in Energy Studies, James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy

 

 
To view the entire conference, please click below:
 

When

Wed, May 21, 2008
7:30 am - 4 pm
(GMT-05:00) America/Chicago

Where

James A. Baker III Hall