Mariana Liakopoulou is a research analyst focusing on natural gas security of supply, geopolitics and decarbonization in the European and Eurasian energy markets. She serves as Research Fellow in Energy Security with the NATO Association of Canada (Toronto, Ontario, Canada). She is also Editor-in-Chief of the Palgrave Macmillan Studies in Energy Transitions Series (London, U.K.). In that capacity, she oversees and contributes to the drafting of “The Palgrave Handbook of Zero Carbon Energy Systems and Energy Transitions”, a book project aiming to provide an inter- and multi-disciplinary comprehensive analysis, knowledge and overview of zero-carbon energy systems, energy transitions and related areas. Formerly, Mariana was a consultant and member of the Roster of Experts of the Energy Community Secretariat (Vienna, Austria). Before that, she was a non-resident Research Fellow in Energy Security and Geopolitics with the Caspian Policy Center (Washington D.C.) and a member of the Strategy and Communication Team of the European Union Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (Ljubljana, Slovenia). Her publication record comprises works for an array of industry sources, including the International Association for Energy Economics, the United States Association for Energy Economics, Natural Gas World, Gulf Intelligence and European Gas Hub. She is moreover frequently quoted in the media (e.g., Bloomberg, Deutsche Welle). Mariana holds a Master’s in International Relations and European Studies from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Her Master’s thesis looks into the Caspian legal status and riparian producers’ outlook with regard to the European Commission’s strategy towards the Fourth/Southern Gas Corridor. She is fluent in English, French, Greek and Russian and has elementary knowledge of Ukrainian.
Energy Security

The Agreement on the Dostluk Field and the Outlook for Caspian Energy Security

Download: The Agreement on the Dostluk Field and the Outlook for Caspian Energy Security (19 pages, 385 KB) Title: The Agreement on the Dostluk Field and the Outlook for Caspian Energy Security Authors: Mariana Liakopoulou and Fabio Indio Series: Energy security Program Research Study No. 2 Date: December 2021 Executive Summary This Research Study examines Read More…

Energy Security

The Opening of the Southern Gas Corridor

Download: Energy Security Research Brief No. 2 January 2021 (11 pages, 315KB) Title: The Opening of the Southern Gas CorridorAuthor: Mariana LiakopoulouSeries: Energy Security Program Research Brief No. 2Date: January 2021 The Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) is a 3,500-kilometre network of three pipelines: the South Caucasus Pipeline (SCP), Trans- Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) and Trans-Adriatic Pipeline Read More…

Energy Security

The new European Commission and the Future Role of Gas in Europe

The natural gas portfolio of the new European Commission (EC) seeks to ensure security of supply throughout Europe. Simultaneously, it has to determine a role for natural gas towards the envisioned carbon-neutral EU economy of 2050. The EU was first compelled to advance the supply-security aspect of natural gas after the 2006 and 2009 interruptions Read More…

Cyber Security and Emerging Threats Energy Security Uncategorized

Beyond the Southern Gas Corridor: A Regional Infrastructure Perspective

Looking into the fundamentals of the EU’s energy security strategy, a steadfast resoluteness is evident on the promotion of gas-on-gas competition, supported by benchmark hubs, although the costly field development outside of the Union has always been combined with the guarantee of long-term contracts.

Energy & Resources Energy Security Europe Security, Trade and the Economy Uncategorized

Beyond the Southern Gas Corridor: Interconnecting Central/East Europe and the Balkans?

Following the August signing of the Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea, the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC), a large-scale gas pipeline project that aspires to connect the region’s copious hydrocarbon resources to the European markets, has been drawn back into international debate.   The present article illuminates how the SGC enhances the Read More…