30 Seconds with...Thierry Bros

Ahead of the 2013 Flame Conference in Amsterdam next month, we spent a bit of time getting to know Thierry Bros in our 30 Seconds With… interview series.

Thierry Bros, Senior Analyst, European Gas & LNG Markets at Société Générale, will be presenting a guest analysis at Flame within the Outlook For European Gas Trading session, providing in-depth analysis & comparison of global hub evolution.

You can download a free copy of the Flame programme here.

What’s keeping you busy at the moment?

The usual forecasting, watching for the ever changing “black swans”… and my recently published book on the consequences of the US shale gas revolution.

What do you see as the biggest challenge the natural gas industry currently faces?

European gas demand reached a peak in 2005.   To date, 13 years of growth have been erased and there seems to be no chance of the 500 bcm level being attained this side of 2020. The European gas industry needs to think fast about how to boost demand.

How do you see the industry evolving in the next 5 years?

Does the industry really want to grow gas demand or is it just happy to watch a gradual destruction of demand…

What is the biggest innovation you have seen recently/hope to see in the natural gas industry?

We all hope for Carbon Capture and Sequestration… But when is this going to be available on an industrial basis?

Which geographical region is going to be the most exciting for the natural gas industry moving forward?

The US, where the shale oil revolution is picking up. US crude production should grow by 23% in the coming 2 years (2012-2014). It took 5 years to grow US gas production by 24% (2007-2012). An energy independent North America is going to reshuffle geopolitical cards.

Who do you most respect in the natural gas industry and why?

My job is to challenge the industry conventional thinking!

What are you most looking forward to at Flame in 2013?

I am keen to see whether Flame 2013 is going to be a wake-up call for the European gas industry. Is the industry now going to focus on clients?

BIO:  Thierry Bros was appointed to his current role in 2010. Thierry joined Société Générale in 2007, as Senior Financial Analyst, to provide clients with recommendations on listed pan-European gas stocks and in-depth research on gas issues. Thierry was, from 2002 to 2007, Senior Oil & Gas expert at the French Department of Trade and Industry. He is the author of the book After the US shale gas revolution published, in 2012, by Editions Technip. In December 2012, Thierry was appointed as a member of the EU-Russia Gas Advisory Council which provides recommendations on long-term gas cooperation to the Russian Federation Minister of Energy and the European Commissioner for Energy.

To find out more about the upcoming Flame Conference in March, visit the Flame 2013 website.