Mideast tourism has bright future

UNWTO projects 7% annual growth over 20 years

Despite events of the Arab Spring, and potential uncertainty in the wake of austerity measures in key source European markets, there is a bright future ahead for tourism in the Middle East and North Africa, according to a consensus of delegates at the first United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and Arabian Travel Market industry forum.

The summit, which took place at Arabian Travel Market on Monday, is now set to become an annual fixture that brings together both government and private sector officials to seek common goals and mutual benefits from the promotion of travel in to the region.

Speaking at the forum, UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, called the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region a “tourism success story in the first decade of the 21st century”, with the majority of markets already showing a strong rebound following the challenges of the last 12 months.

Rifai also shared some insight into the regional situation and gave a positive prognosis for the future. “We are very impressed by the rate of recovery of some of the most affected countries in the region. Countries that were directly affected, like Egypt, Tunisia, Syria and Yemen, saw a downturn of 80 to 85 per cent as political events unfolded, but minimised their losses considerably in 2011, closing the year down by 25 to 30 per cent.”

“The potential for growth is still excellent as we are starting from a low nominal base in the region. Even with 79 to 80 million tourist arrivals, the region has less than 8 per cent of the world’s intake of tourists, which currently stands at almost one billion. The MENA region deserves much more,” he added.

While UNWTO statistics recorded the loss of an estimated seven million tourists across the region last year, the organisation is projecting a seven per cent annual growth rate over the next 20 years with visitor totals hitting 195 million by 2030, up from 79 million in 2010.

Setting an optimistic tone, Egypt’s Minister of Tourism, HE Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour said first quarter visitor figures indicated the country was on the right track to return to the level of 2010 numbers by the end of the year, following a downturn of 33 per cent in 2011.

Tarak Labib, Regional Director of Sales Egypt, Hilton Worldwide, said, “The local market was a saviour for our resorts, and we were already seeing business come back by the end of March/early April,” he said.

Leanne Harwood, Vice President of Commercial for India, Middle East and Africa, InterContinental Hotel Group, took a more cautious stance, and noted that until “Egypt stops being on the front page, it’s difficult to see some stability but we’ve seen losses drop to 30 per cent from 80 per cent, so [the market is] definitely rebounding.”

Jordan Tourist Board director, Dr Abdelrazzak Arabiyat proposed joint marketing and packages. “In order to capitalise on long haul markets, we believe we have to combine packages with neighbours to offer Dubai and Jordan, Egypt and Jordan, Oman and Jordan,” he said.

His view was echoed by the minister of tourism for Oman, Her Excellency Maitha Al Mahrouqi who said, “Oman has its own elements, but we can work with others to package together, as well as increasing visa co-operation.”

Looking ahead, Rifai identified certain destinations as ‘ones to watch’. “There are a number of attractive untouched destinations that need a lot of investment, such as Libya and Algeria. These are sleeping giants” he said.

According to Reed Travel Exhibitions’ Portfolio Director, Mark Walsh, the summit was set to become an essential forum for regional issues facing the travel and tourism sector.

“While every destination has its priorities and strategies, there is a common goal to promote the region and we are delighted at the level of participation in this inaugural event which demonstrates a will to work together at all levels,” he concluded.

Source: Emirates247

Libya helps give Italy's Eni a Q1 profit boost

Italy's largest energy company Eni SpA said Friday that its first-quarter profits rose 42 percent on increased production in Libya and higher prices.

The Rome-based company said net profit for the first three months of 2012 was (EURO)3.62 billion ($4.78 billion), up from (EURO)2.55 billion in the same period last year, even though oil and natural gas production was down a modest 0.6 percent at 1.674 million barrels a day.

Eni shares nevertheless were trading up 0.1 percent to (EURO)16.58 on the Milan Stock Exchange.

Eni's Libyan production was cut off during the first quarter of last year due to the armed conflict in the country that endangered oil workers and blocked exports. Production is expected to reach levels achieved before the conflict of 280,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day by the second half of the year.

"Eni delivered excellent results thanks to the ongoing recovery of production in Libya and higher oil prices, despite the difficult market environment," Eni CEO Paolo Scaroni said in a statement.

Eni, however, said European refining operations were unprofitable. Eni said that was due to high raw oil prices, overcapacity in European refineries and sluggish fuel demand on higher consumer prices.

The company forecasts 2012 to be "challenging" due to the ongoing crisis and volatile market conditions.

Scaroni highlighted Eni's deal with the Russian oil giant Rosneft earlier this week to explore the Arctic, saying it "underpins our exploration opportunities for many years to come, further boosting our prospects for long-term growth".

Eni is active in Russia, where it has started production at the giant Samburgskoye field in Siberia. Production there is expected to reach 43,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day.

Eni also reported successful exploration in Mozambique, and signed a contract with China National Offshore Oil Corporation to explore an offshore basin in China.

By Colleen Barry

AP Business Writer

Libyan Airlines restart Malta operations today (20th April 2012)

Libyan Airlines will restart operations to and from Malta today after wet-leasing an aircraft to circumvent the ban imposed by the European Commission earlier this month.

The airline will fly out twice weekly, Monday and Thursday, after managing to strike a wet-leasing agreement with Nouvelair, Tunisia’s leading private airline.

Libyan Airlines’ representative in Malta, Kevin Farrugia, said the new aircraft, an Airbus A320, would allow the airline to continue flying between Libya and Malta.

Discussions are also in their final phase to operate flights to other European destinations including Manchester, Rome, Madrid and Athens, among others, he said.

A wet lease is a leasing arrangement where an airline provides an aircraft, complete with crew, maintenance and insurance, to another airline which pays by hours operated. The airline leasing the aircraft provides fuel and covers airport fees and any other duties and taxes.

As in this case, a wet-leased aircraft may be used to fly services into countries where the airline is banned from operating with its own aircraft.

Earlier this month the Commission banned all Libyan airlines from European airspace until November, at the earliest, because of safety concerns.

A Commission spokesman said when contacted yesterday that wet-leasing aircraft were not excluded when airlines were banned from European airspace.

The ban was agreed with Libya’s civil aviation authorities following “serious concerns… regarding the safety oversight of air carriers licensed in Libya”.

The EU’s updated air safety list included a ban on the Venezuelan airline Conviasa, due to numerous safety concerns arising from accidents and the results of ramp checks at EU airports.

Mr Farrugia said the flights from Tripoli will arrive in Malta every Monday and Thursday at 6.15 p.m., with a return flight leaving Malta an hour later.

He said Libyan Airlines was also in the process of wet-leasing another of Nouvelair’s Airbus fleet and this will also be used on the Malta route, increasing frequency to and from Malta from twice weekly to four times a week.

Mr Farrugia said Libyan Airlines will also be providing a cargo service, with the possibility of transporting cargo to and from Tripoli and Malta.

(Source: Times of Malta)

Libya asks "Turkey" for help to restructure oil facilities

A view of Zawiya oil refinery is pictured in Zawiya 57 kilometers west of Tripoli. Restructuring Libya needs international support to rebuild its oil facilities.

Libya’s Economy Minister Ahmed al-Koshli said yesterday that his country wants to benefit from the technology Turkey possesses, speaking in the “Energy, Economy and Sustainable Development” session of the Eurasian Economic Summit.

“The know-how and experienceTurkey has is very important for us. We want Turkey to share its experiences with Libya,” he said, adding that his country is working on integrating with the global economy. Al-Koshli also said Libya’s bourse is now open. “Free Libya wants to learn about environmentally friendly technologies, especially solar and wind energy, so that we will have the opportunity to export clean energy to Europe and other countries.”

Meanwhile, Mohammad Reza Farzin, Iran’s deputy minister of economy and finance, said Iran’s government has decided to initiate reforms in the areas of energy prices and economic development.

Unfair distribution

Iran is the 17th largest economy in the world, with its $930 billion GDP, according to data from the International Monetary Fund, Farzin said. The country has the second largest oil and natural gas reserves in the world. 

Keeping energy prices artificially low leads to unfair income distribution, energy smuggling and higher energy consumption, Farzin said, adding that if the current rate of increase in energy consumption in Iran continues for the next 20 years, the country will consume all the oil it produces.

Source: Hurriyet daily news

The Full Story behind Ban of Libyan Airlines from Operating in EU

Photo: Afriqiyah Airways plane is standstill at an airport. By Dr. Amin B. Marghani On 3 April, the European Commission adopted the 19th update a ruling banning Libyan carriers from flying into EU countries, saying that “following constructive consultations, Libyan authorities decided to adopt strong measures applicable to all air carriers licensed in Libya, which exclude them from flying into the EU until at least November 2012.” However, it is the Libyan Minister of Transportation to blame for encouraging such ruling by the EC Aviation Safety Committee (ECASC) by acknowledging its claims, right or wrong, and volunteered to prevent Libyan air carriers from operating into Europe’s airspace. In its ruling the ECASC used the Libyan minister’s ‘acknowledgement’ to do two things. First, even though there were no grounds to ban Libyan airlines, the uncalled for and clear acknowledgement by the Libyan minister of transportation save ECASC from making any efforts to explain its ban. Secondly, Libyan airlines would have been banned at any time provided that they violated their own Minister’s halt of flights. This way of dealing with such matter has no precedence. A Minister is supposed to protect the country’s interests. The Libyan airlines deserve protection since there were no safety issues related to the airlines, and almost all aircraft maintenance is carried out on Libyan aircraft with Lufthansa Technique, Air France or other European specialised firms. After all airlines are vital because they represent strategic organisations and they are important for the country’s economy and society. The story goes back to September 2011when the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority (LCAA), looked to resume overseeing flight safety after the fall of Gaddafi, the Authority had to start an uphill struggle to come to grips with its responsibilities to oversee and enforce compliance to airworthiness regulations in a situation laden with security and administrative concerns. In the process, two questions were of significance and needed answers: first what to do about outstanding findings which remained unresolved since ICAO audit carried out in 2007, the other is to see that Libyan air carriers resume operations and restore their pre-war network. In this context, LCAA started dealing with the European Commission. The LCAA thought that a few weeks were required before airlines could reposition themselves to resume operations and wrote to the EC, suggesting that in the weeks as such required by the airlines, could be sufficient to mend many of the outstanding issues. LCAA was talking to CAAI, a British CAA consultancy, which would have been on the list of firms who can help effectively. In response, the Libyan CAA was warned by the EC that unless they met a stringent deadline to provide promised information, the matter would be referred to EC Aviation Safety Committee which would ban Libyan Operators. A technical team was quickly formed to make several presentations to Brussels showing airlines had no problems. At the last meeting the Libyan Minister of Transportation decided to head the team and lead the negotiations only to decide banning his own carriers from flying to Europe. Meanwhile, Libyan air carriers are leasing aircraft to resume operations and have to abstain from operating to Europe using Libyan registered aircraft unless the airworthiness is transferred to another country, the aircraft are reregistered in another country or until the EC Air Safety Committee is satisfied that The Libyan Civil Aviation Authority can carry out airworthiness oversight efficiently. Though the ECASC does not ban Libyan air carriers, and was made to show determination from ECASC that air safety is intolerant of less than perfection, this is a case that deserves investigation whether the ruling was genuinely necessary. The problem lies with the Libyan Civil Aviation Authorities (LCAA) as acknowledged by the Libyan Minister of Transport and the ECASC. LCAA has been working to adopt a fast track program to rectify issues but remains constrained by the consequences of war in Libya and continued lack of funding. The LCAA was unable to make good and quickly remedy certain ICAO findings (reported in 2007) after the war and, simply remained not fully ready to implement full airworthiness oversight and to EC satisfaction. Normally, since the shortfall in legislation and regulations and their enforcement is true, the Libyan Government should have sought assistance by negotiating an agreement with a neighbouring country, as permitted under the Chicago Convention, to include Libya in their airworthiness oversight jurisdiction until Libyan Civil Aviation Authority gets ready. But the Minister of Transportation chose to sacrifice the national airlines and request the exclusion of Libyan air carriers from Europe. True the airlines were under scrutiny but not condemned and thus not included in the EU banned airlines list. The Draconian measure explained by the ECASC as a consequence of the request made by the Libyan Minister, distancing itself somewhat from the decision. European Airlines will continue to operate into Libyan Airspace controlled by the same Libyan Airworthiness Authority. That is incredible. If the Libyan authorities asked to ban the Libyan National Airlines, because of the inadequacy of the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority ‘Airworthiness ‘ deficiencies, then European Airlines should abstain from flying to Libya, too? If they don’t, Libyan airlines should be allowed back into European airspace. The Libyan Transport Minister’s abstention order should be revoked, and the Grip of the Transport Minister on the LCAA and airlines should be loosened and the LAW applied. He is supposed to be a politician and leave technical people to do their job. Libya should seek to include its airworthiness enforcement in another country’s civil aviation authority until LCAA becomes fit again. The writer is an air transport consultant. He contributed this article to The Tripoli Post.

Solar power from Sahara a step closer

The German-led Desertec initiative believes it can deliver power to Europe as early as 2015


A $400bn (£240bn) plan to provide Europe with solar power from the Sahara moved a step closer to reality today with the formation of a consortium of 12 companies to carry out the work.
The Desertec Industrial Initiative (DII) aims to provide 15% of Europe's electricity by 2050 or earlier via power lines stretching across the desert and Mediterranean sea.

The German-led consortium was brought together by Munich Re, the world's biggest reinsurer, and consists of some of country's biggest engineering and power companies, including Siemens, E.ON, ABB and Deutsche Bank.

It now believes the DII can deliver solar power to Europe as early as 2015.
"We have now passed a real milestone as the company has been founded and there is definitely a profitable business there," said Professor Peter Höppe, Munich Re's head of climate change.
"We see this as a big step towards solving the two main problems facing the world in the coming years - climate change and energy security," said Höppe.

The solar technology involved is known as concentrated solar power (CSP) which uses mirrors to concentrate the sun's rays on a fluid container. The super-heated liquid then drives turbines to generate electricity. The advantage over solar photovoltaic panels, which convert sunlight directly to electricity, is that if sufficient hot fluid is stored in containers, the generators can run all night.

The technology is not new - there have been CSP plants running in the deserts of California and Nevada for two decades. But it is the scale of the Desertec initiative which is a first, along with plans to connect North Africa to Europe with new high voltage direct current cables which transport electricity over great distances with little loss.

Leading European energy industry expert Paul van Son has been appointed chief executive of DII and will recruit staff to build up a framework to make the building of both power plants and the grid infrastructure.

"We recognise and strongly support the Desertec vision as a pivotal part of the transition to a sustainable energy supply in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe," he said.
"Now the time has come to turn this vision into reality. That implies intensive cooperation with many parties and cultures to create a sound basis for feasible investments into renewable energy technologies and interconnected grids."

Desertec has gained broad support across Europe, with the newly elected German coalition government of Angela Merkel hoping the project could offset its dependence on Russian gas supplies.

North African governments are said to be keen, too, to further exploit their natural resources. Algeria and Libya are already big oil and gas suppliers to Europe.

Höppe said Munich Re had been concerned about the potential impact of climate change on the insurance business since the early 1970s. Extreme weather events related to climate change are already a reality and have the potential to be uninsurable against within a few decades, pointing to a possible crisis for the industry, he said.
"To keep our business model alive in 30 or 40 years we have to ensure things are still insurable," he said.

Munich Re also plans to invest in the new initiative and Höppe said banks were confident that they could raise sufficient funding to make the project work.

There are already some small CSP plants in Spain and North Africa, with the power used locally. But Desertec plans to see big power stations of one gigawatt operating in five years' time and exporting some current across the Mediterranean. The consortium stresses, though, that power generated by solar fields in North Africa would be used by North Africans as well as Europeans. North Africa has a small population relative to the size of its deserts. For similar reasons Australia is putting together its own Desertec initiative.

Dan Lewis, head of a new thinktank, the Economic Policy Centre, and author of a forthcoming energy policy paper, said: "This is just the sort of long-term, big-difference, energy security gain project that our UK short-term targets and policy framework can't deliver.

"Instead, we're spending ridiculous sums on no-hoper, marginal stuff like fusion energy and a massive smart meter rollout, that at best will only shave a fraction off peak demand."

Source: guarden.co.uk