Dr. Naji Abi-Aad is currently the Chief Operating Officer of Petroleb, an oil company based in Beirut and active in petroleum exploration offshore in the East Mediterranean, and a Professor at Sciences Po Paris. In addition, he manages the Institute for Energy Economics at the American University of Beirut (AUB). Prior, Dr. Abi-Aad served as a Senior Advisor to the CEO of Qatar Petroleum International (QPI) for a year, following six years as a Research Advisor for Qatar Petroleum and its Board of Directors.
He also previously served as Media and Research Strategist in the Office of HE Qatar’s Deputy Premier, Minister of Energy & Industry. Between 1999 and 2005, Dr. Abi-Aad was managing director of Econergy, a Beirut-based research centere which carried out studies on the economic and energy developments in the East Mediterranean and the Gulf. He was also engaged between 1988 and 2003 as Senior Advisor for the Middle East within the French-based Observatoire Méditerranéen de l’Energie (OME). Dr. Abi-Aad studied at the American University of Beirut before being awarded a PhD in Energy Economics from Grenoble University in France.
During his 30 years of experience, he has been involved in extensive consultations, conferences, and research studies, particularly on oil and gas in the Middle East. He has authored over 80 reports on Middle East energy issues, as well as a book on the security of petroleum supply from the region.