Europe's, and particularly SE Europe’s, high dependence on fossil fuels, the current volatile energy pricing environment, the global concern for the development of viable alternatives and the need to promote further carbon free solutions emerge as key policy issues. As usual the “Energy Dialogue” will also cover the latest developments in the region’s evolving natural gas, electricity and RES markets and the ongoing energy partnerships with major oil and gas suppliers. Furthermore, IENE’s background paper on “Energy Security, Market Integration and Sustainability in SE Europe”, to be released in advance, will help guide the Dialogue’s proceedings.

After twelve successful years the SEEED is now considered the seminal regional energy event that has managed to engage not only the region’s top policy-makers, financiers and entrepreneurs but also secure high-level participation from some of the world’s leading energy and banking institutions, including the International Energy Agency (IEA), the European Commission, the Energy Community Secretariat, IRENA, OSCE, SEECAO, JRC, the Energy Charter, the World Energy Council (WEC), the European Investment Bank (EIB), EBRD, the World Bank, Energy Fuel Europe, Eurelectric, Eurogas, EFET, EPIA and COGEN, OIES, AERS (Serbia) and RAE (Greece). The forum’s delegates and speakers over the past years have included senior executives from major international corporations including BP, Shell, Gazprom Export, Equinor, NIGEC (Iran), OMV, EDF, CDF Suez, ENEL, RWE, EON, Endesa, but also from national champions such as PPC, Serbgas, Plinacro, CEZ, Transgas, TEIAS, Turkeler, TDinamik, Transelectrica, KESH, Bulgarian Energy Holding, SEEPEX, Athens Energy Exchange, EPIAS, Edison, ESO EAD, DEPA, DESFA, Hellenic Petroleum, Energean, Mytilineos,  and many others.

The IENE by organising this year’s “SE Europe Energy Dialogue” in hybrid format aspires to contribute once again to a high level discussion on the region’s key energy issues but also act as a facilitator for much needed co-operation between suppliers and consumers and thus promote the role of SE Europe as a vital East-West, North-South energy bridge.