López de Silanes advocates a common european policy to guarantee competitiveness and security of supply

• The Chairman of CLH participated today in the Santander Summer Courses organised by the Catholic University of Valencia

The Chairman of the CLH Group, José Luis López de Silanes, participated today in the Santander Summer Courses organised by the Catholic University of Valencia ‘San Vicente Mártir’ within the programme ‘Growth Factors of the Spanish Economy for 2014’, where he argued the need for a long-term common European energy policy to guarantee supply of oil and oil products, as well as industry competitiveness across the European Union.

In his speech, López de Silanes explained the changes that are taking place in the world energy scene, characterised by the growth of oil and non-conventional gases, the introduction of alternative energy sources and the increased demand for energy in emerging economies.

“As a consequence, the oil industry is experiencing an important transformation in production and refining activities, which is affecting traditional oil and oil product flows. This will have important implications for competitiveness and security of supply in the EU countries,” he said.

López de Silanes also highlighted that “one of the important effects of the growth in production of non-conventional natural gas and oil in the US is the reduction of energy costs in that country, offering a competitive advantage compared to the European production sector and that of other industrialised countries.”

The Chairman of the CLH Group emphasised that “it is now more necessary than ever to have an articulated European policy to continue guaranteeing purchase capacity in competitive conditions and the security of supply of oil and oil products in view of the deep changes that are taking place in the oil industry.”

Furthermore, he explained that the imbalances between production sites and oil consumption, as well as the increasing demand, will give rise to significant changes in commercial flows of crude oil, refined products and gas, which will require new investments. This will lead to logistics becoming an increasingly strategic factor for security of supply.

The Catholic University of Valencia was founded in December 2003 and it has seven schools offering 20 official Degrees. Among other activities, every year it organises the Summer Courses, as an opportunity for further academic and professional education.

Compañía Logística de Hidrocarburos CLH is the leading company in Spain for oil product transportation and storage, with over 4,000 kilometres of oil pipeline and 39 storage and 28 airport facilities.