The Future of the Middle East: Horizons of Challenges and Opportunities

... Natural gas has gained importance, accounting for more than half of the total energy demand, oil has shrunk to below 40 percent. The geographic structure of hydrocarbon exports is gradually changing in favor of the countries of East and South Asia (Japan, China, South Korea, India), followed by Europe. The United States is becoming the main energy competitor for Middle Eastern hydrocarbon producers, replacing Saudi Arabia as the regulator of global energy markets. The most significant consequence of the changes taking place on world energy markets will be the inevitable decline in "oil rent" that the ...