UAE minister scoops oil diplomacy award

Suhail Al Mazrouei, the UAE’s minister of Energy and Industry, was awarded the ‘International Oil Diplomacy Person of the Year 2018’ Award at a major oil and gas conference in London on Thursday.

At the Energy Institute’s International Petroleum Week (IP Week), the minister was nominated for the award by Gulf Intelligence, a communications and research firm and Middle Eastern knowledge partner of the Energy Institute.

Mr Al Mazrouei played a key role in steering the Middle East away from fuel subsidies and tackling unsustainable consumption patterns to ensure that the UAE and others were aligned with the international community’s efforts to overcome climate change in support of the Paris Agreement, the Energy Institute stated in its Letter of Award.

Louise Kingham, CEO, Energy Institute, said: “As President of the OPEC Conference, [Mr Al Mazrouei has] shown exemplary vision and leadership through 2018 with your stewardship of the continued implementation of the ‘historical’ agreement to seek oil market stability among some 25 OPEC and non-OPEC countries to the benefit of producing and consuming nations alike.”

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Sean Evers, managing partner, Gulf Intelligence, added: “The efforts by the UAE Minister of Energy in his role as OPEC President contributed significantly to oil prices recovering through the year to average above $70 a barrel in 2018, after hovering around $55 in 2017.”

Evers added that Mr Al Mazrouei’s diplomatic skills were “critical” in a year where the relationship between OPEC countries was fractured and was in danger of falling apart. In December last year, Qatar announced that it would leave the international oil organisation, after 57 years of membership.

Delegates – including senior leaders, policymakers and academics – from over 50 countries attended IP Week, to discuss the future of energy and gas industry. As well as Mr Al Mazrouei, speakers at the event included Amin Nasser, president and chief executive officer of Saudi oil company ARAMCO, Liam Fox, the UK’s Secretary of State for International Trade and Bob Dudley, group CEO at BP.

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Other simple ideas for sushi rice dishes

Cheat’s nigiri
This is easier to make than sushi rolls. With damp hands, form the cooled rice into small tablet shapes. Place slices of fresh, raw salmon, mackerel or trout (or smoked salmon) lightly touched with wasabi, then press, wasabi side-down, onto the rice. Serve with soy sauce and pickled ginger.

Easy omurice
This fusion dish combines Asian fried rice with a western omelette. To make, fry cooked and cooled sushi rice with chopped vegetables such as carrot and onion and lashings of sweet-tangy ketchup, then wrap in a soft egg omelette.

Deconstructed sushi salad platter
This makes a great, fuss-free sharing meal. Arrange sushi rice on a platter or board, then fill the space with all your favourite sushi ingredients (edamame beans, cooked prawns or tuna, tempura veggies, pickled ginger and chilli tofu), with a dressing or dipping sauce on the side.

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1.	United States
2.	China
3.	UAE
4.	Japan
5	Norway
6.	Canada
7.	Singapore
8.	Australia
9.	Saudi Arabia
10.	South Korea

Tearful appearance

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.

Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.

She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.

A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.

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If you go

The nearest international airport to the start of the Chuysky Trakt is in Novosibirsk. Emirates (www.emirates.com) offer codeshare flights with S7 Airlines (www.s7.ru) via Moscow for US$5,300 (Dh19,467) return including taxes. Cheaper flights are available on Flydubai and Air Astana or Aeroflot combination, flying via Astana in Kazakhstan or Moscow. Economy class tickets are available for US$650 (Dh2,400).
The Double Tree by Hilton in Novosibirsk ( 7 383 2230100,) has double rooms from US$60 (Dh220). You can rent cabins at camp grounds or rooms in guesthouses in the towns for around US$25 (Dh90).
The transport Minibuses run along the Chuysky Trakt but if you want to stop for sightseeing, hire a taxi from Gorno-Altaisk for about US$100 (Dh360) a day. Take a Russian phrasebook or download a translation app. Tour companies such as Altair-Tour ( 7 383 2125115 ) offer hiking and adventure packages.