GeoDebates: gas geopolitics
How are the worldʼs main gas sites formed and where? Why does the price of this fuel fluctuate? How is it transported from the reservoir to its final destination? How does the distribution of regasification plants and gas pipelines condition regional and global geopolitics? Will we see a decline in its production? What will be the consequences of the war between Russia and Ukraine regarding energy?
How are the worldʼs main gas sites formed and where? Why does the price of this fuel fluctuate? How is it transported from the reservoir to its final destination? How does the distribution of regasification plants and gas pipelines condition regional and global geopolitics? Will we see a decline in its production? What will be the consequences of the war between Russia and Ukraine regarding energy?
The debate on the uses of fossil fuels —in a scenario of global climate change and conflicts in the worldʼs geopolitical configuration— is a current issue, which will be addressed in the third edition of GeoDebates, driven by the Faculty of Earth Sciences of the University of Barcelona.
The session, with support from the Catalan Association for Scientific Communication (ACCC), will take place on 15 November, at 6:00 pm, in the Aula Magna Carmina Virgili of the Faculty of Earth Sciences, and will be streamed on the facultyʼs Youtube. To attend the event, previous registration is not required.
Gas, the economy and international politics
Natural gas is a determining element: it represents 20% of all the primary energy used in Catalonia and 25% of it in Spain. Lately, the prices of this fuel have skyrocketed to levels Europe had never seen before, which is directly reflected in the house bills and has compromised many businessesʼ viability. The global gas market is conditioned by bilateral commercial agreements between countries that make important geopolitical alliances. As a result of these agreements, some European countries depend on the gas Russia exports, and therefore, have been deeply affected by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
To talk about these questions, the new session of GeoDebates will include the participation of the following experts:
Patricia Cabello, lecturer at the Department of Earth and Ocean Dynamics of the Faculty of Earth Sciences and the Geomodels Research Institute. She is an expert on characterization studies and fluid reservoir modelling (hydrocarbons, CO2, water) and on gas hydrate modelling.
Mariano Marzo, emeritus professor at the Faculty of Earth Sciences. He is an expert on energy resources and fuel geology. His teaching and research career focused on the exploration and production of hydrocarbons, geopolitics and energy transition. He leads the UB Chair Repsol Foundation on Energy Transition.
Alfons Pérez, researcher at the Debt Observatory in Globalisation and expert on the impacts of the EU energy geopolitics and financial capitalism on countries in the global south. He is a member of the Network for Energy Sovereignty and the Network for Climate Justice. He is now working on the monitoring of the energy dimension of the war in Ukraine.
Cristina Mas, journalist and writer in the newspaper ARA since 2010. She graduated in Journalism and Contemporary History, and majored in the Mediterranean field. She is the correspondent in Morocco, Argelia, Tunisia, Lebanon and Palestine, among other countries, and has covered the war between Russia and Ukraine in the conflict territory.
Ricard González, political scientist and journalist expert on the Arabian world. He has been a correspondent in Washington, Cairo and Tunisia for several media and as the newspapers El PAÍS and ARA, among others. He is the author of the book Ascens i caiguda dels Germans Musulmans (UOC, 2015) and has made several documentaries.