About the Event:

Long before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Europe had growing concerns about its over-dependence upon Russian oil and gas, Putin’s history of playing pipeline politics, and his proven willingness to ‘turn off the gas’ – even in winter. As the world’s third largest producer of oil and the second largest producer of natural gas, the global economic impacts of Russia’s brutal war on Ukraine will be felt for months, and perhaps even years.

Since the start of the war, oil has remained near or above $100 per barrel, levels not consistently seen in 14 years, adding to existing apprehension in many nations about concerning rates of inflation. Natural gas prices in Europe have never been higher; and European demand for more imported liquified natural gas (LNG) is expected to continue to rise, despite the higher relative costs. Many European nations are also reassessing the viabilities of their longer term ‘energy mix’ with regards to fossil fuels, renewables and nuclear power.

Europe typically imports almost 40% of its natural gas from Russia and about 25% of its oil. In spite of desires to significantly reduce Europe’s and others dependency on Russian energy, finding dependable and cost-effective alternative sources will be complicated and require time.

Oil and gas account for almost 60% of all Russian exports, and those revenues fund about 40% of Russia’s annual federal budget. So despite powerful energy sanctions on Russia and a large number of major oil and gas companies stating they will withdraw from Russia, Putin will not accept these major economic punishments lightly. And it remains to be seen where Russian, and indeed global, oil and gas production and consumption will be in the months and years to come – and the toll it all may take on the global economy.

This event is sponsored in part by Mayer Brown LLP

About the Speakers:

Jim Krane, Ph.D., is the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy in Houston. He specializes in energy geopolitics, with a focus on oil-exporting countries and the challenges they face from energy subsidies, internal demand and climate change. He teaches classes on energy policy and geopolitics at Rice University.

Krane’s scholarly articles have been published in Nature Energy, Energy Policy, Energy Journal, Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, MRS Energy and Sustainability, the British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists as well as numerous edited volumes.

He is the author of two books. His acclaimed 2009 volume “City of Gold: Dubai and the Dream of Capitalism” is widely recognized as the seminal work on the iconoclastic city-state, while his award-winning 2019 book “Energy Kingdoms: Oil and Political Survival in the Persian Gulf” is the definitive study of energy demand in the Gulf region.

Krane spent nearly 20 years as a journalist, six of them in the Middle East. He was a longtime correspondent for the Associated Press based in Dubai, Baghdad and New York, and has written for myriad other publications including the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times and the Economist Intelligence Unit. He is the winner of several journalism awards including the 2003 AP Managing Editors Deadline Reporting Award, received for his coverage of Saddam Hussein’s capture in Iraq. Krane received his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, master’s from Columbia University and bachelor’s from City College of New York.

Gretel Echarte is a senior associate in Mayer Brown’s Washington DC office and a member of the Export Control & Sanctions practice of the Government and Global Trade Group. She focuses on US law and policy related to sanctions and export controls across a wide range of industries including the financial and energy sectors, manufacturing, and professional services, among others.

Gretel regularly handles internal investigations in connection with alleged violations of the US sanctions laws, the EAR and the ITAR, as well as voluntary disclosures and related enforcement proceedings before OFAC, BIS and DDTC. Gretel provides regulatory compliance advice to firm clients on a wide range of sanctions and export controls matters, and develops compliance solutions that are integrated in the clients’ business processes. She also conducts sanctions and export controls due diligence in advance of acquisitions, IPOs, and other major transactions.

Additionally, Gretel, who was born, raised and educated in Havana, Cuba, is one of the leaders of the firm’s Cuba practice and assists firm clients seeking to establish a presence, or operating, in Cuba under current US sanctions regulations.

Furthermore, Gretel advises clients on anticorruption compliance matters, in particular in connection with financing, insurance underwriting, M&A and other transactions. She served in the Monitor’s team conducting the multi-year FCPA monitorship of a major airline.

Moderator: 

Norman Nadorff, Counsel to Mayer Brown, is located in Houston and reports to the Rio de Janeiro office. His practice centers on international energy transactions.

For 30 years, Norman served as in-house counsel for major oil companies with primary focus on Latin America, West Africa and Indonesia. He was Senior Counsel for BP in Angola from 2006 to 2015 as well as Legal Manager for BP Brazil and ARCO Indonesia, where he held two expatriate assignments in the 1990’s.

Norman has drafted and negotiated a wide range of energy-related in many countries. At ARCO, Norman wrote the Company’s policies on Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, US Anti-boycott laws and US Export Regulations. He has participated in corruption, fraud, conflict of interest and hostage-taking investigations.

Norman has been Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Houston Law Center since 2012 and has taught International Petroleum Agreements in several US and foreign law schools. He is currently a Director of the Brazil-Texas Chamber of Commerce and former Director of the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators in which he is active in several capacities.

Prior to the renewed hostilities in Ukraine, Nadorff had been scheduled to lecture this April at the St. Petersburg State University Faculty of Law as a Fulbright Specialist in Oil and Gas law.