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Press ReleaseFrontier Strategy Group Managing Director Alex Gorbansky Discusses Key Trends Shaping the Oil and Gas Sector in West Africa and Southeast Asia at the 2006 World Junior Oil and Gas Congress in London, UK CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – (BUSINESS WIRE) – December 1, 2006 – Frontier Strategy Group Managing Director Alex Gorbansky discussed key trends shaping the oil and gas sector in West Africa and Southeast Asia at the 2006 World Junior Oil and Gas Congress. Speaking on the West Africa panel, Gorbansky noted the intensifying competitive landscape in the region, "West Africa's enormous potential has made it a geopolitical battleground for natural resources between the US, China, India, and other resource hungry countries." Gorbansky observed that the entry of new players from the developing world has profoundly impacted the relationship between governments and investors, "Host governments have recognized that they now hold enormous leverage, as investors from different countries vie for access to their resources. Western investment is no longer the only option for sub-Saharan governments, and as Chinese state-backed firms such as Sinopec and CNOOC pay significant premiums and signing bonuses to governments from Angola to Nigeria, many Western players such as BP, Exxon, and Total may find themselves at a competitive disadvantage." As a moderator on the Southeast Asia panel, Gorbansky emphasized the importance of the region to global supply, "Its location on China's doorstep and the criticality of the Straits of Malacca to global oil transport make Southeast Asia one of the most strategic oil and gas producing regions in the world." But Gorbansky also highlighted the challenges facing investors and companies in Southeast Asia, "Despite enormous resource wealth, production rates are declining and Indonesia - the region's bellwether - has recently become a net oil importer. This reflects significant infrastructure inefficiencies and under investment which juniors and other investors in the region will need to overcome to be successful." About Alex GorbanskyAlex Gorbansky is a Managing Director at Frontier Strategy Group and heads the Africa Mining & Energy practice at the Frontier Strategy Group. About Frontier Strategy GroupFrontier Strategy Group is a global consulting and advisory firm focused on the natural resources industries. Key practices include country-entry and growth strategies, M&A advisory, political risk assessments and permitting assessments. The firm is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and has offices in New York and Washington DC. Media Contact:
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