The largest-ever Middle East Oil Show and Conference (MEOS 2011) opened in Bahrain last night with a total of 1,619 delegates, 1,173 visitors and 1,721 exhibitors  taking part in the three-day event.

The show is being held under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre.

'These numbers are significantly more than any other previous event,' said conference chairman Mohammad A Husain.

'The huge numbers are testimony to the immense popularity of the event in general and to Bahrain being the host in particular.'

He said that at the last show, there were 795 delegates, 725 visitors and 1,733 exhibitors.

'The significant jump has also meant two exhibition halls have been made ready for the event, which opens today.'

The three-day event has been organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers in co-operation with Arabian Exhibition Management and is being held under the theme, Shaping the future: Innovating beyond limits.

While the conference began last night, the three-day exhibition opens today. It will be open from 9.30am to 5pm today and tomorrow and from 9.30am to 3pm on Wednesday.

Energy Minister Dr Abdulhussain Mirza, speaking at the opening, said energy challenges were being faced by all countries in the world and not the GCC countries alone.

'The global energy consumption is expected to increase by 36 per cent by 2035, and this demand is driven by the increase in population and the development of emerging countries.'

He said all this will increase the pressure on energy supplies due to increased population and economic output and improved living standards.

'The challenges that face the production of crude oil in the future, will lead to the creation of opportunities for establishing working relationships and strategic alliances and acquisitions between international oil companies and national oil companies.'

He said experts have also forecast that demand for crude oil will increase to 104 million barrels per day in the next two decades. 'The days of easy oil are gone,' said Dr Mirza.

'The fact remains that the world will still depend on fossil fuels since more than 50 per cent of the world's energy needs will still depend on them even if the use of renewable energy triples over the next quarter of a century.'

He said in Bahrain, production will double within five years and treble within seven years after Tatweer Petroleum took charge of drilling operations.

'The company is expected to drill around 3,600 developmental wells in the next 20 years,' the minister added.-TradeArabia News Service