Dr. Fereidun Fesharaki, Chairman

Dr. Fesharaki holds a PhD in Energy Economics and has authored dozens of books and many more articles on the field. Dr. Fesharaki was the 1993 President of the International Association for Energy Economics (IAEE), a key professional organization representing more than 3,000 energy economists in more than 70 countries. In 1989, Dr. Fesharaki was elected a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. Since 1991, he has been a member of the International Advisory Board of Nippon Oil (currently JX Holdings)—Japan’s largest oil company. In 1995, Dr. Fesharaki was elected Senior Fellow of the US Association of Energy Economics for distinguished services. In 1998, Dr. Fesharaki joined the Board of Directors of the American-Iranian Council. In 2002, he was appointed Senior Associate of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC. In 2008, Dr. Fesharaki was appointed a member of the National Petroleum Council by then US Secretary of Energy, Samuel W. Bodman, and was reappointed by current US Secretary of Energy, Steven Chu, in 2010. In 2009, Dr. Fesharaki was appointed a member of the Dubai Mercantile Exchange Limited (DME) Board of Directors. In 2012, Dr. Fesharaki received the Outstanding Contributions to the IAEE Award. In 2013, Dr. Fesharaki joined the Advisory Board of VOPAK LNG.

Prior to founding FGE, he was with Harvard's Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and in the late 1970s, he was the Energy Advisor to the Prime Minister of Iran and a delegate to OPEC's Ministerial Conferences. He has led energy-related academic research at the East-West Center since 1985.

Mr. Mark F. Lewis, Group Vice Chairman and Managing Director, London (EMC)

Mr. Lewis is a Business Studies graduate with over 30 years of oil and energy consulting experience. He spent over 15 years with Petroleum Economics Ltd, where he rose to become joint Managing Director, before co-founding EMC. Over the years he has consulted with a range of clients including majors, US multinationals, European ex-state companies and producer NOCs. At FGE’s EMC, Mark has overall responsibility for company operations, presenting at conferences and client seminars, as well as overseeing EMC’s long-term market and industry coverage.

Mr. Shahriar Fesharaki, Chief Operating Officer and Acting Managing Director, Dubai

Mr. Fesharaki holds an MBA with an emphasis on International Business. He specializes in LNG marketing, and is responsible for providing buyers and sellers with sourcing and placement strategies for LNG. In addition, he specializes in the Korean market and LNG pricing. Mr. Fesharaki has spoken at a number of natural gas conferences as well as authored numerous reports and studies with respect to the Asia-Pacific LNG market. He also focuses on business development, specifically looking at new growth opportunities for FGE. As COO, he oversees gas consulting activities at FGE.

Mr. Chris Gascoyne, Managing Director, Singapore

Mr. Gascoyne has over thirty years of experience in marketing, price risk management, trading, business development, and investment analysis in the petroleum industry. His experience is primarily in crude oil, but also in commercial and market development facets of pipeline gas, LNG, refined petroleum products, LPG, and tar sands. His specialties are oil and gas pricing, the identification, execution, and management of corporate price risk, oil and gas marketing and market development, refinery economics, and project development. Most of this experience was with BHP in its petroleum division. He performed various oil and gas commercial roles between 1982 and 2000. His final position with BHP was Manager – Oil Trading, Strategy and Risk Management. Since leaving BHP, he has been an independent consultant and contractor specializing in commercial aspects of the oil, gas, and LPG industries. He has undertaken short- and medium-term projects with companies including Reliance Petroleum, Shell Global Solutions, Woodside Petroleum, Singapore Petroleum, Saudi Aramco, Pertamina, Petronas, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Thai Oil, Origin Energy, InterOil, Morgan Stanley, the Victorian government, AGL, Snowy Hydro, and the Bahrain Labour Fund. He has a Bachelor of Economics.

Dr. Kang Wu, Senior Advisor, Hawaii

Dr. Wu has a PhD in Economics. He is an energy economist and conducts studies on energy policy, security, demand, supply, trade, as well as oil and gas market developments in Asia. Kang is an energy expert on China and is familiar with downstream oil sector issues in the Asia-Pacific region. He is the author and co-author of numerous publications and is a regular speaker at energy conferences and has numerous publications to his credit. He is also a Senior Fellow at the East-West Center in Hawaii.

Dr. David Isaak, Huntington Beach, California
David received his MA and PhD in Geography, with theses on the world tanker market and on the development and economics of the Middle East petrochemical industry. Dr. Isaak has been working with FACTS since its founding in 1982. David specializes in every aspect of the Asia-Pacific oil industry from refining modeling to trade to price strategies.

Mr. Andy Flower, London, United Kingdom
Andy retired from BP after 32 years of service. For the last 22 years he was involved in BP’s LNG and natural gas business activities where his final post was as Senior Adviser, Global LNG. At various times, Andy managed BP’s interests in projects in Nigeria, Abu Dhabi, Australia, and Qatar. Mr. Flower is the co-author of the recently published LNG: Developing and Financing International Energy Projects.

Mr. Nicholas Biederman, Chicago, Illinois
Nicholas holds a BS in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering with a specialization in Gas Technology. He has authored over 100 technical papers and reports on a wide range of subjects in natural gas distribution and pipeline technology. He has also served as a Consulting Editor for the Pipeline and Gas Journal. Nicholas has been focusing professionally on natural gas distribution operations. With the company he formed, Gas Operations Innovation Alliance, LLC, Mr. Biederman concentrates on R&D monitoring of new technologies and hardware development.

Mr. Arthur Dixon AM, Perth, Australia
Arthur graduated as a chemical engineer from Melbourne University and has had more than 40 years with Shell. For 25 of those years, he was associated with Liquefied Natural Gas. Inter alia, he has been Project Co-ordinator, General Manager Marketing, a Director of Shell International Gas, Brunei Shell Tankers and Australia LNG Ship Operating Company (ALSOC), was the inaugural President of the North West Shelf LNG marketing company, Australia LNG Pty Ltd, and was seconded to Chevron as Senior Advisor on the Gorgon LNG Project. Arthur has been involved in various roles with LNG ventures in Australia, Brunei, Nigeria, Oman, and Malaysia and has an unusually broad base of experience across the LNG chain. Mr. Dixon is the non-executive Chairman of New Standard Energy Ltd, an ASX-listed oil and gas exploration company. In 2008, Arthur was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia.

Mr. Robert Dunbar, Calgary, Canada
Bob has more than 30 years of business experience and was directly involved in the strategic planning process leading to the privatization of Petro-Canada. He was a Senior Director at the Canadian Energy Research Institute and has more than 15 years of strategic management experience as both a senior manager and a consultant. Mr. Dunbar is also the President and founder of Strategy West, Inc., a consulting firm that focuses on Canada’s oil sands industry.

Mr. Guy Caruso, Washington, DC
He holds a B.S. in Business Administration and an M.S. in Economics from the University of Connecticut. He also earned a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard University. Guy is the former Administrator (2002-2008) with the Energy Information Administration (EIA), an agency within the United States Department of Energy (DOE). Prior to joining DOE, Mr. Caruso worked at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as an International Energy Economist in the Office of Economic Research; was the Director of the National Energy Strategy (NES) project for the United States Energy Association (USEA); served as the Executive Director of the Strategic Energy Initiative Project, under the Energy and National Security Program of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Mr. Caruso also worked at the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), first as the Head of the Oil Industry Division where he was responsible for analyzing world oil supply/demand and developments in the oil industry; and later, as Director of the Office of Non-Members Countries where he directed studies on energy-related developments.

Mr. Carlos A. Cabrera, Northbrook, Illinois
He holds a BS in chemical engineering from the University of Kentucky and a Master's degree in business administration from the University of Chicago. Carlos served most recently as Chairman of UOP. Prior that he also served as President and Chief Executive Officer. Carlos has been granted seven patents by the US Patent Office, is author of numerous publications, and frequently serves on many industry panels as a worldwide recognized business and technical leader. Mr. Cabrera is a member of the Board of Directors of NPRA and the NPRA Petrochemical Committee; received an honorary ISA membership, the highest form of recognition bestowed by the Instrument Society of America; has been inducted to the University of Kentucky Engineering’s Hall of Distinction; and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers awarded him with the 2007 Fuels and Petrochemicals Division Leadership Award, in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the advancement of the fuels and petrochemical industry.

Mr. James A. Slutz, Fairfax, Virginia
He holds a B.S. from Ohio State University, School of Natural Resources and an MBA from Ohio State University, Fisher College of Business. James recently completed his tenure as United States’ Assistant Secretary of Energy. In that position, he was the executive responsible for oil, natural gas, and carbon capture and storage research portfolios, related policy issues, and managing the strategic petroleum reserve. James previously served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oil and Natural Gas. Prior to joining the Department of Energy (DOE), James served as the Indiana Oil and Gas Director, regulating the State’s upstream oil and gas industry. Mr. Slutz serves on the Advisory Board of Hart Energy Publishing and is on the Advisory Board of the Canada Institute of the Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars.

Dr. Herman Franssen, Washington, D.C.
Dr. Franssen has a PhD in International Economics. His early career experience in energy policy making and implementation in the US culminated in an appointment as Director of the Office of International Market Analysis of the US Department of Energy. This was followed by five years as Chief Economist of the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris and ten years as the Senior Economic Advisor of the Minister of Petroleum and Minerals in Oman. Since leaving Oman in 1996, Dr. Franssen has been working as an energy consultant in the Washington, D.C. area. He is also a Senior Fellow at CSIS, an Adjunct Scholar of the Middle East Institute, a Visiting Fellow of CGES (Yamani Centre), and serves on the Advisory Board of several energy companies and the Editorial Board of energy publications in US, Europe, and Canada.

Dott. Angelo Mario Taraborrelli, Italy
He has an international Law degree and a Masters in Oil Economics from the Scuola Superiore Enrico Mattei in Italy. Angelo spent most of his professional life working for ENI, which included periods in the Planning Dept, as assistant to the Managing Director of ENI’s upstream operations, heading the West African trading operations, as Deputy Chairman of ENI’s subsidiary SnamProgetti, Managing Director of ENI’s marketing division and CEO of the Refining and Marketing Division of the group until 2007. He retired in 2009 when he was CEO of Syndial, an affiliate of ENI involved in the chemical business and environmental projects. Mr. Taraborrelli became a Member of the Board of Enel S.p.A., an Italian multinational energy company involved in the gas and power business in April 2011.

Mr. Koorosh H. Ameli, The Netherlands
Mr. Ameli’s distinguished career of more than 30 years includes serving as a Judge for the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, as well as a member of the Expert Group and Steering Committee of the Permanent Court of Arbitration and the International Law Association (HQ), Committee on International (Commercial) Arbitration, and Study Group on International Responsibility. He is also a Fellow in the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK) and an Arbitrator for the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization Tehran Regional Arbitration Center. He has participated in deciding over 100 of cases before the Claims Tribunal as well as a number of cases before the International Chamber of Commerce International Court of Arbitration and ad hoc international arbitral tribunals. He also acts as legal expert in international arbitration cases involving bilateral investment treaties. Mr. Ameli has a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the National University of Iran. He was in the George Washington University Law School’s Doctor of Juridical Science program before leaving to take up duty with the Claims Tribunal in The Hague. In addition to Iranian law and Islamic law, Mr. Ameli’s field of experience covers public international law—inter-State arbitration and litigation, State responsibility, expropriation and valuation, humanitarian law, armed conflicts, law of the sea, and air law. And private international law—foreign investment, oil and gas, joint ventures and industrial cooperation, construction, turn-key projects, patent licensing and technology transfer, international trade, banking and finance, and aviation.

Mr. Bill Sooby, London, United Kingdom
He has an MBA from Henley – The Management College and a BA Physics from Wadham College, University of Oxford. Bill is an energy professional with 19 years of international commercial and technical management experience in both the oil and gas divisions of Shell and a consultant with extensive multicultural activities since 2007. While at Shell, Bill gained specialist LNG expertise covering pricing, supply/demand, and negotiation of complex supply agreements across the LNG supply chain; was responsible for statistical analysis and economic modeling of long term capital-intensive LNG and power projects; promoted innovative commercial structures to support business development with Independent Power Producers, managing risk and creating opportunities for reward; and in-depth technical experience with the electricity, nuclear power, and LPG industries. Mr. Sooby is a Chartered Engineer, Member of the Institute of Nuclear Engineers, a European Engineer (Eur Ing), and a member of the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators.

Mr. Adrian Clark, Melbourne, Australia
He has more than 30 years experience in the oil and gas industry with BP. In his early career, he performed various roles in both of BP’s Australian refineries, his last being that of Operations Manager at the Brisbane site. During the second half of his career, Mr. Clark occupied a succession of key strategic, operational, and commercial roles in BP’s Asian supply and trading business, headquartered in Singapore. This included a period when he led the team accountable for all supply and trading activities in Australia and New Zealand. Mr. Clark has a B.Sc (Chemical Engineering) Honours from the University of Edinburgh. He has been a non-executive Director of a publicly-listed company in New Zealand and is a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Mr. John Vautrain, Thailand
Mr. Vautrain was formerly Senior Vice President and Director of Purvin & Gertz. In his thirty-year career at Purvin & Gertz, he was the Manager of their Singapore office for over ten years, and earlier had been Manager of the company's office in Long Beach, California. Mr. Vautrain is an expert in petroleum refining and crude oil related issues and regularly teaches seminars on these subjects. Since early 2012, Mr. Vautrain has pursued independent consulting. He holds degrees in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas and the University of Utah.

Mr. Sakura Sakakibara, Tokyo, Japan
He holds a B.A. from Keio University and started his career at the Arabian Oil Company. Other positions held include Chief Economist at the Institute of Energy Economics (Japan) and Senior Fellow at Mitsui Global Studies Institute. Mr. Sakakibara is currently the Director at the IRIS Research Institute for Trade & Industry as well as Executive Private Advisor to the Chairman of Economy, Trade & Industry Committee of the House of Representatives).

Mr. Mehdi Adib, Vancouver, Canada
Mehdi has over 40 years of experience in the project management, engineering, procurement, and construction industry. Most recent experience is in the development and implementation of international mega projects, strategy planning and development, organizational improvement, risk assessment and mitigation planning, project financing and program management. Other areas of expertise include business development, corporate management, and organizational development projects worldwide (North and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East). Mr. Adib has a B.Sc. (Hon.) in Mechanical Engineering from University of Bath, England. He has held executive positions at Jurong Aromatics Corporation (Singapore), ChemWEyaat (Abu Dhabi), Saudi International Petrochemical Company (Saudi Arabia), and Bechtel International (various locations).

Mr. Alberto Alvarez, Madrid, Spain
Alberto has over 30 years of experience in the international oil and gas industry having focused the last ten years in the natural gas and LNG industry. He retired in December 2010 after 28 years with the Repsol Group. His last position was Commercial Director at Repsol Gas Natural LNG (Stream), an equally-owned joint venture incorporated in 2005 by Repsol and Gas Natural to manage both companies’ LNG portfolios and related business worldwide. He has extensive knowledge and experience in the European, Southeast Asian, Middle Eastern, South and North American LNG markets. With the Repsol Group, he amassed a varied career living in Spain, the UK, and Argentina with experience in the areas of marketing, power generation, gas and electricity distribution, project development, mergers and acquisitions, finance, and administration. He has a Public Accountant degree from the National University of Rosario and an MBA with the Institute for the Development of Entrepreneurs in Argentina. Born and educated in Argentina, he settled in Europe in the early seventies. He worked for Coopers & Lybrand in Spain and in the UK as an external auditor and consultant before joining the Repsol Group. Alberto is currently an Independent Advisor.

Japan Energy Research Assistant/Analyst in Singapore (Full-Time)

Location: Singapore

FACTS Global Energy (FGE), a leading consulting company specializing in downstream oil and natural gas/LNG market analysis East of Suez, is expanding its Singapore operations. This position, based in Singapore, offers an opportunity for a young, dynamic individual seeking career advancement with international exposure.

The ideal candidate should have the following attributes:

• A minimum of a Bachelor"s degree equivalent in business/statistics/economics/engineering or related higher education qualifications. (for Analyst position)
• Ability to read Japanese. Spoken is an additional strength but not critical.
• Keen to learn and grasp an understanding of the Japanese gas/LNG, crude oil and products markets (i.e., who imports/exports, role of storage, main traders, trade flows, etc.).
• Keen to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the various aspects of market operations, such as fundamentals, relationship between the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Atlantic Basin.
• Good written (English) skills - ability to write clearly and briefing to get the key points across.
• Strong ability to multi-task.
• Must fit in with the rest of the team.
• Should be able to see the opportunity offered by the job - lots of prospects to develop a key role in an expanding consultancy business.

Remuneration will be based on skills, talent, and experience.  Salary is competitive, with potential for generous bonuses. Fresh graduates welcome to apply.

The Research Assistant/Analyst"s main responsibilities include:

• Working closely with country/product experts to provide necessary support to the Japan research and consulting group.
• Fulfilling the group"s research and consulting mandate as well as participating in ad-hoc preparation of reports, presentations, and other materials to clients.
• Maintaining and improving FACTS Global Energy"s (FGE) information database (LNG, trade, refining, and petrochemicals) by closely monitoring the energy markets.
• Taking responsibility for carrying out preliminary qualitative and quantitative analysis on interdisciplinary research with relation to the energy market.

Interested candidates are to indicate the position you are applying for and submit resume with full details, including current and expected salary to [email protected]

Participate in the expansion of FGE’s Asian short-term market analysis practice.
Working closely with other oil and gas experts to provide strategic and analytical inputs to the research and consulting group.
Develop databases and market intelligence processes to enable regular reporting of market fundamentals and outlooks.
Prepare reports in a timely, relevant, and thought-provoking manner.
Fulfilling the group’s research and consulting mandate as well as participating in ad-hoc projects.
Work closely with the marketing team to promote FGE’s oil/gas service to potential clients while maintaining close relationships with existing clients.
Interested candidates are to indicate the position you are applying for and submit resume with full details, including current and expected salary to [email protected]

Rearch Analyst Position

Location: London

We are looking for a candidate with 2-3 years’ experience preferably, with following attributes:

• Experience in analysis/forecasting of oil production by field/country worldwide to 2030 (with knowledge of associated research into oil reserves, field project plans, costs, etc)

• Knowledge/experience in research/analysis of crude oil supply by quality (API, etc)

• Knowledge/experience in analysis/forecasting of crude oil price differentials, both short-term (monthly projections) and long-term (annual forecasts, to 20 years ahead)

• Knowledge/experience in research/analysis of US midstream projects (pipelines, etc)

Position involves research/analysis related to these broad areas, with ability to assess large databases, research relevant information from numerous web-based and hard-copy sources and draw concise conclusions. Coverage includes writing contributions on oil supply and prices for various monthly/weekly/quarterly/annual reports (ie on field-by-field output developments, country/regional and global trends; price differentials history/outlook; summary of implications of US midstream developments for supply). Also, involvement in specific ad-hoc studies and multi-client projects when required; plus preparation of presentations for clients/seminars, responding to client queries, assisting colleagues in London and other offices to answer queries.

Ideal candidate would have very good capability in Excel, Word and PowerPoint, with high numeracy and ability to write concisely under time-pressure against frequent deadlines.

Academic background would preferably be in Economics or similar discipline, hopefully with specialism in oil-related studies. Suitable candidates may have been working in similar role in oil company (probably upstream), energy/oil consultancy or financial institution covering oil.

Competitive salary offered, commensurate with age and experience; self-contributory pension scheme (with matching company contributions), medical insurance and season ticket loans.

If you are interested in applying for this position, please send your CV, covering letter, salary expectations and current availability to [email protected]

Consultant - Gas/LNG Specialist (Full Time)

Location: Singapore

FACTS Global Energy (FGE), a leading consulting company specializing in downstream oil and natural gas/LNG market analysis East of Suez, is expanding its Singapore operations. This position, based in Singapore, offers an opportunity for a dynamic individual seeking career opportunities with international exposure.

The ideal candidate should have the following attributes:

• Economics/engineering degree or related higher education qualifications.
• At least 3-5 years of experience in the gas/LNG business.
• Should have solid understanding of gas/LNG market fundamentals and commercial aspect of the gas/LNG business. Knowledge of the technical side of the business would be an added advantage
• A grasp on wider global gas/LNG issues and preferably specific knowledge of the Asian or Atlantic Basin (Europe/American) markets.
• Demonstrate the ability to think creatively about micro/macro issues related to the gas/LNG sector.
• Equipped with the capability to conduct both qualitative and quantitative analysis independently.
• Understanding and modelling structures and dynamics of defined market segments in the downstream gas industry.
• Handling various consulting and research requests from our clients.
• Excellent verbal and written (English) skills including being able to communicate and present ideas clearly and to the point.
• Must fit in with the rest of the team, and be able to take on the lead role to synergize project efforts amongst regional offices.
• Should be able to see the opportunity offered by the job – lots of prospects to develop a key role in an expanding consultancy business.
• Remuneration will be based on skills, talent, and experience. Salary is competitive with potential generous bonuses.
• Singapore citizens or Permanent Residents preferred but not essential.

The consultant would be part of FGE’s gas team. Main responsibilities include:

• Working closely with other gas/LNG experts to provide strategic and analytical inputs to the research and consulting group.
• Formulate market outlooks and prepare reports in a timely, relevant, and thought-provoking manner.
• Fulfilling the group’s research and consulting mandate as well as participating in ad-hoc projects.
• Work closely with the marketing team to promote FGE’s gas/LNG service to potential clients while maintaining close relationships with existing clients. The position will involve direct contact with our clients.
• Optional to be able to present papers at industry conferences but definitely an advantage.

Interested candidates are to indicate the position you are applying for and submit resume with full details, including current and expected salary to [email protected]

Energy Research Assistant (Full Time)

Location: Singapore

FACTS Global Energy (FGE), a leading consulting company specializing in downstream oil and natural gas/LNG market analysis East of Suez, is expanding its Singapore operations. This position, based in Singapore, offers an opportunity for a young, dynamic individual seeking career advancement with international exposure.

The ideal candidate should have the following attributes:

• A minimum of a diploma certificate equivalent in business/statistics/economics/engineering or related higher education qualifications.
• Keen to learn and grasp an understanding of the Far East gas/LNG, crude oil and products markets (i.e., who imports/exports, role of storage, main traders, trade flows, etc.).
• Keen to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the various aspects of market operations, such as fundamentals, relationship between the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Atlantic Basin.
• Good written (English) skills – ability to write clearly and briefly to get the key points across.
• Strong ability to multi-task.
• Must fit in with the rest of the team.
• Fluency in English.
• Fluency in a language other than English or Mandarin preferred.
• Should be able to see the opportunity offered by the job – lots of prospects to develop a key role in an expanding consultancy business.

Remuneration will be based on skills, talent, and experience. Salary is competitive, with potential for generous bonuses. Fresh graduates welcome to apply.

The Research Assistant would be part of FGE’s Information & Analysis Group (IAG). Main responsibilities include:

• Working closely with country/product experts to provide necessary support to the research and consulting group.
• Fulfilling the group’s research and consulting mandate as well as participating in ad-hoc projects.
• Working with consultants and other analysts to generate fundamental research for the preparation of reports, presentations, and other materials to clients.
• Maintaining and improving FACTS Global Energy’s (FGE) information database (LNG, trade, refining, and petrochemicals) by closely monitoring the energy markets.
• Taking responsibility for carrying out preliminary qualitative and quantitative analysis on interdisciplinary research with relation to the energy market.

Interested candidates are to indicate the position you are applying for and submit resume with full details, including current and expected salary to [email protected]