Mr. Jorge Segrelles
Chairman, Spanish Organising Committee

For the entire Spanish oil and gas industry it was a great honour to have gained the confidence of the Council to host the 19th World Petroleum Congress in Spain.

After more than a decade of itinerancy through Asia, the Americas and Africa, the Congress comes back to good old Europe which, strangely enough, turns out to be a continent rather different from the one the Congress met when it was last here.

Overcoming paramount difficulties, some European Union countries have put into practice one of the most remarkable achievements in economic history. Since 1 January 2002, more than 300 million of my fellow European citizens have dropped their beloved national bank notes and have adopted a common currency, the Euro, marking the beginning of a new era in the economic relations of our continent with the rest of the world.

Nevertheless, similar accomplishments in other areas, namely the Energy sector, are still to come. Although Europe is one of the largest worldwide oil consumers, it still needs to work hard on critical issues such as the full development of a sound and coherent external energy policy that, without questioning the right of individual Member States to pursue their interests, will enhance our position of consumers committed with their suppliers as partners in a global quest for prosperity.

Spain is, within Europe, a particularly interesting case. In the last decades, with a record of successful market reforms and several years of growth above the EU average, this country has gone through a rather noticeable evolution. The energy sector, like others, has been engaged in a process of market opening and privatization, embracing competition, internationalization and business integration, a course of renovation that has completely transformed Spanish energy companies.

Within Spain, Madrid is a joyful city where business and leisure have reconciled. Madrilenians work hard, but they are known for finding by some means the way to enjoy life everyday of the week, and for sure you will also find the way not to leave this city without having first enjoyed some of its extensive monumental, cultural, culinary and leisure offers.

This is the environment in which the 19th World Petroleum Congress will be celebrated. Come to Spain, to Europe, for the most important oil and gas meeting of this decade.