Country '7th most attractive' for oil investments in MENA

Petroleum survey sees great offshore potential Corruption, political instability, are deterrents

The country was ranked 71st, out of 147 economies worldwide, in terms of its attractiveness to investments in oil and gas extraction, according to the 2012 Global Petroleum Survey.

The survey, published by the Canada-based Fraser Institute in June, ranked the country seventh out of 17 MENA countries. The survey, which included Lebanon for the first time, gave the country a score of 45, out of 100. A score of 100 indicates least attractive. Qatar ranked first regionally and 32nd globally, with a score of 25.

According to the survey, Lebanon has “great offshore potential.”

The survey assesses the attractiveness of upstream petroleum investments in a country through 18 factors that affect investor decisions. It was distributed to 623 respondents representing 529 petroleum exploration and production companies. Political stability, corruption, and cost of regulatory compliance were the strongest deterrents to investments in the petroleum industry. Other barriers include the country’s legal system and trade barriers.

Reported by Hanadi Chami