Commodity prices and energy transition top 2016 World Energy Congress programme

The 23rd World Energy Congress, which is taking place in Istanbul, between 9 and 13 October 2016 has today announced the first key highlights of its official event programme.  Headline sessions will include weathering the commodity price storm and the impact of the COP21 agreement on the energy industry. Prominent leaders such as Jean-Bernard Levy, Chairman and CEO of EDF; Amin H. Nasser, CEO of Saudi Aramco; Zhenya Liu, Chairman of SGCC; Johannes Teyssen, CEO of E.ON; Strive Masiyiwa, CEO of Econet as well as Ben van Beurden, CEO of Shell, will deliver speeches, in what promises to be a spectacular and thought provoking Congress.  

The four day programme will address the most important energy issues facing the entire global energy leaders’ community as we map the transition to a low carbon energy future.  Discussions will be on a diverse range of issues from understanding how innovative business models are shaping the electricity revolution to what key actions are required to meet tomorrow’s energy goals.  

The Congress will run for four days, with each day dedicated to a theme: day one: Vision and scenarios for the future, day two: Identifying the business opportunities, resources and technologies, day three: The Energy Trilemma, with day four focused on Africa and its role in securing a stable energy future. 

The World Energy Congress will open on Monday, 10 October with a special address from Ahmet Davutoglu, Prime Minister of Turkey, followed by the opening session with Fatih Birol, Executive Director IEA; Isabelle Kocher, Deputy CEO and Chief Operating Officer ENGIE and Guler Sabanci, Chairman and Managing Director of Turkish Sabanci Holding, discussing what the challenges the world will face on its grand energy transition trajectory to 2060. 

Christoph Frei, Secretary General, World Energy Council commented: “We are on the frontier of a massive energy transition. As industry and governments address the impact of commodity prices, the dynamism in renewables, uncertainty in the CO2 price, the integration of China and India into international energy institutions and a new spirit of innovation, we wanted to ensure that this Congress did not shy away from the difficult decisions. This year’s event is the perfect platform for the global community to come together and shape the market of the future.”

Hasan Murat Mercan, President of the Turkish Member Committee, World Energy Council commented: “The calibre and experience of our key note speakers is exceptional and we are delighted to welcome Ministers and Heads of States such as Rainer Baake, State Secretary from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy who will lead proceedings on day three of the Congress; The Energy Trilemma: Policy Solutions to Secure Prosperity. This is a must attend event for the global energy community and there is something for everyone to learn and participate in at the Congress.”

The 23rd World Energy Congress is under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Turkey, His Excellency Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who is personally looking forward to addressing and welcoming up to 10,000 of the world most influential energy sector delegates to the historic city of Istanbul.