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Bob Burdett +1 415 369 1114 |
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NEXANT TO LEAD MAJOR ENERGY PROGRAM IN SOUTH ASIA USAID-SPONSORED SOUTH ASIA REGIONAL INITIATIVE FOR ENERGY WILL BUILD ON SUCCESS OF PREVIOUS EFFORT San Francisco---November 11, 2003---Nexant, Inc. (www.nexant.com), a leading provider of technology solutions and consulting services to the global energy industry, announced today that it has been selected to manage the second phase of the South Asia Regional Initiative for Energy (known as SARI/E-II). Sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the new five-year SARI/E-II program is intended to promote regional cooperation in energy as a means of enhancing economic growth and poverty alleviation in one of the world's most heavily populated areas.“Our extensive experience in supporting a broad range of energy needs throughout South Asia, together with our worldwide expertise in power sector restructuring, demand- and supply-side management, energy efficiency, and advanced energy technologies, were critical factors in positioning Nexant to take on the challenges of SARI/E-II,” said Basem Sarandah, Nexant president and CEO. “Additionally, under the first phase of SARI/E, we played an instrumental role in helping to build mutually beneficial energy linkages between the countries of South Asia, and we hope to see these linkages develop and expand over the next five years,” Sarandah said. “The energy sectors of South Asia have many features in common, including public ownership and management, poor governance and, consequently, economic inefficiency-including system insolvency,” according to Bob Beckman, USAID regional coordinator and program manager for SARI/E-II. “The energy sector restructuring that is underway throughout the region provides an opportunity to create market-based trade and cooperation in energy which, according to recent studies, could benefit regional economies by increasing national GDPs by as much as 1% to 2% per year-solely due to regional energy cooperation. This as-yet-unrealized potential is of major importance.” The SARI/E nations initially include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, with additional countries expected to join the program in the second phase. SARI/E-II's primary goals include increasing the capacity of training and research institutions to advocate and support regional energy cooperation; increasing awareness of opportunities for regional energy cooperation; enhancing the understanding of the linkages between competitiveness, industrial growth, and energy cooperation among regional industry leaders and associations; and fostering regional collaboration on common energy issues such as power sector reform, markets for energy-efficient appliances, and electricity access for underserved populations. “For the next phase of the program, we will be concentrating on regional energy security and forging closer interactions with critical stakeholders throughout the region,” said Hugh McDermott, Nexant vice president and chief of party for SARI/E-II. “These groups include academia, NGOs and policy organizations, the media, energy users, and leading business and industry associations and organizations.” “Under SARI/E-I, we have had good success in establishing a number of alliances and promoting cross-border collaboration in several key areas. We intend to continue our stakeholder-driven strategy as a means of identifying and addressing shared issues,” McDermott continued. “For example, we recently gained the regional commitments to develop and adopt common energy efficiency standards for consumer appliances. In this new phase, we will be supporting the implementation and regional harmonization of these standards. This has confidence-building benefits as well as directly benefiting regional trade in consumer goods.” Additional information on the first phase of the SARI/E program may be found online at www.sari-energy.org. About Nexant Nexant’s products and services help clients solve critical strategic and operational challenges in several key areas: retail and wholesale power markets; energy trading; enterprise risk management and decision support; energy delivery and management; advanced energy technology; and petroleum and chemicals. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. Nexant maintains offices in London, U.K.; Bangkok, Thailand; Tokyo, Japan; White Plains, NY; Washington, D.C.; Houston, TX; Boulder, CO; Phoenix, AZ; and Madison, WI. The company is owned by a select group of investors and Nexant management and employees. Nexant® is a proprietary trademark of Nexant, Inc. |
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