With a population of 800 million, predicted annual economic growth rates above 5 per cent and a glaring shortfall in capacity, sub-Saharan Africa offers an appealing market for power generation companies willing to face a notoriously challenging investment context. Sub-Saharan Africa's rivers are estimated to hold a potential for hydropower of 1750 GWh per year, of which only 7 per cent has been exploited Source: Eskom In terms of its per-capita endowment of primary energy, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is close to the global average. Its 800 million people make up about 9 per cent of the world's population and they are estimated to share 8 per cent of global gas reserves, 10 per cent of the world's oil, and 13 per cent of hydropower resources – as well as much more than their fair share of solar radiation.

Recent events in Libya and Bahrain have been of great concern to many foreign investors, operators and governments concerned with the potential threat of disruption of gas supplies. So far, for Europe, it is fortunate that gas imports from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have not been affected significantly. This book explains the importance of this region’s gas resources to the world. What is this publication about? This book examines the possibility that the MENA region could face a possible ‘gas crisis’ by the end of the decade, which will result in much lower levels of exports than has been expected from a region that contains an estimated 40% of the world’s gas reserves. It examines and comments on the individual trends and policies that affect each of the markets that make up the MENA region.