THE 19th WORLD PETROLEUM CONGRESS

On the eve of the World Petroleum Council’s 75th Anniversary, in July 2008, Spain will open the doors to the 19th World Petroleum Congress. The most influential meeting place of the global oil and gas industry will be celebrating 75 years of excellence in Madrid from June 29th until July 3rd. This is where governments and oil companies, IOCs and NOCs, industry and stakeholders from around the globe come together to set out the way forward for the petroleum sector. Held every three years, the World Petroleum Congress well deserves its reputation as the ‘Olympics of the oil and gas industry’.

The 19th WPC has already received support from the highest levels in Spain. The King of Spain, H.M. Juan Carlos I, personally extended his support to the Board Members of the World Petroleum Council and the Spanish Association to organize the 19th WPC during an audience at the Zarzuela Palace in Madrid.

The Congress Programme Committee is currently preparing a wide-ranged Technical Programme to recognize the scientific, technological and professional achievements of the petroleum industry. To reflect the ongoing concerns of the world-wide industry, the official theme for the 19th World Petroleum Congress has been chosen as:

A World in Transition: Delivering Energy for Sustainable Growth

Increasing population growth, energy intensity and globalization has led to a phenomenal rise in the use of energy. Demand for oil and gas continues to grow and will have to be met through traditional as well as unconventional sources. Past experience demonstrates that price volatility and economic cycles alternating boom and bust periods were harmful to both the industry and the consumers. The challenge for the industry in a world in transition is to ensure continuous, affordable and reliable supply, meeting society’s expectations in a sustainable, transparent, ethical and environmentally sound manner.

The programme for 19th WPC will include a number of new features. High-level Plenaries from leading industry decision makers, interactive Round Tables and in-depth Forums with innovative Posters on a wide variety of industry aspects will address the status quo and the main challenges the sector is facing. Best Practice Keynotes on the main issues in the upstream, downstream, natural gas, renewables and management of the industry will add further to the quality of the programme. Key issues such as balancing the requirements of supply and demand, social and environmental responsibilities of the industry and ensuring the attraction and retention of the next generation of professionals will be addressed throughout the four days of the Congress. The Official Opening Ceremony will set an excellent standard for the week, with the Spanish Night and the Dewhurst Lecture promising to provide special highlights for the Congress.

The Media Village

The Media Village will consist of many of the national and international media working to promote the 19th WPC worldwide. This area will enable all participants to meet with the leading industry press and other media partners to gather industry and country information.

Social Responsibility Forum

The 19th WPC will host the Social Responsibility Forum representing the industry’s commitment to environmental and community initiatives worldwide. Presented by environmental and social responsibility partners of the petroleum industry, it is aimed at increasing awareness of key initiatives and will showcase projects developed jointly between

NGOs and the industry.

Both the Congress and the Exhibition will be widely promoted at all the key industry events around the globe over the coming two years.

The Rise of the Spanish Petroleum Industry

The 19th World Petroleum Congress will highlight Spain’s unique position as a perfect representation of the integration and importance of the European consumer markets and at the same time the need to increase their participation in exploration and production activities around the world. As a solid and reliable consumer nation, Spain does not have any significant underground or continental shelf oil and gas reserves and imports most of the oil and gas consumed domestically. Consequently, Spanish companies have been forced to seek an active role in the upstream sector and are now participating in international exploration and production activities in more than twenty of the main oil and/or gas producer countries. The Spanish oil and gas industry has experienced a rapid international expansion and is now successfully developing its activities worldwide with integrated companies, playing a major role chiefly in Latin America and Africa.

“We are pleased Spain has been selected to host this event for the international petroleum community. Madrid has held several events of this caliber; the city not only provides history and culture but also has great tourism, accommodation and transport facilities. Furthermore, Spain enjoys a great prestige in the oil economy world, as much for its diversified investments as for the quantity of oil product imports.” Jorge Segrelles, Chair of the Spanish Organising Committee.