Research Library

The Middle East remains a vital supplier of oil and gas resources, but it could begin to take on a different role. Jim Krane discusses the region’s emerging energy strategies in light of energy transitions, highlighting challenges and opportunities for decarbonization.

Osamah Alsayegh discusses how the recent Iran-Iraq gas deal and the reestablishment of Iran-Saudi Arabia relations signal increased regional cooperation in the Persian Gulf to tackle energy and water challenges, despite geopolitical pressures and U.S. opposition.

Rapid urbanization and expansion of cities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has created new opportunities — along with environmental risks, lack of financial and natural resources, and social disparity. In a new issue brief, visiting research scholar Osamah Alsayegh explores how developing smart sustainable cities can bring social and economic benefits to the growing urban population.

The energy transition process depends on investments in clean technologies to cut down carbon emissions in various sectors of the economy. In a new working paper, visiting research fellow Osamah Alsayegh focuses on Arab Gulf states as a case study and proposes policies to mitigate the potential negative impacts of the transition process on affected sectors.

Mark Finley explains the cost-benefit analysis behind the Saudi government's recent move to pause plans to increase spare oil production capacity — and why spare capacity still equates to power in the oil market.

When the OPEC+ group met last week and agreed to extend production cuts through the first quarter of 2024, the market was unimpressed. Fellow in Energy and Global Oil, Mark Finley, outlines the meeting’s outcomes and discusses why the recent agreement “could augur a year of difficult meetings ahead” in a new commentary.

The Arab Gulf is protecting its own interests by pushing to keep fossil fuels in the mix. But more crucially, its agenda is in line with the world’s economic growth and development goals, writes Osamah Alsayegh.

Fellow Gabriel Collins and Andrew S. Erickson explore the possibility of China taking control of Taiwan’s world-leading chip industry without ever invading — and lay out a strategy to prevent such a conquest by Beijing.