HUMAN RESOURCES DEVOTED TO ENERGY ISSUES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 RIYADH 000592

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NEA FOR DAS GGRAY
DEPT OF ENERGY PASS TO A/S KKOLEVAR, DAS HAGBERG, AND
MWILLIAMSON
S/CT FOR GFEIERSTEIN AND BAVERILL
TREASURY PASS TO A/S CLOWERY

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/08/2018
TAGS: APER EPET ENERG SA
SUBJECT: HUMAN RESOURCES DEVOTED TO ENERGY ISSUES

REF: A. E-MAIL WITH EXCEL ATTACHMENT SROSS-RJACHIM
4/8/2008 "ENERGYPERSONNELCOSTS"

B. SECSTATE 10743

Classified By: DCM Michael Gfoeller for reasons
1.4 (b) (c) and (d).


1. (U) This message is cleared by DOE/OE Assistant
Secretary Kolevar.

SIPDIS


2. (U) Per reftel B request, the State Department expended
$275,269 on personnel costs to cover energy-related issues at
Mission Saudi Arabia during the last year, and an additional
$27,538 in program funds for energy-related activities. The
Mission also expended an additional $21,306 in Department of
Energy-sourced funding to support long-term DOE TDY
assistance in Saudi Arabia. A complete analysis of Mission
personnel, percent of time they devote to energy issues,
personnel costs, and related program costs is included in ref
A in an Excel spreadsheet format. Program costs may vary
from year to year depending on work load and visitor demands.


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Energy Issues and Personnel Coverage
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3. (U) Personnel Costs: Mission personnel, predominantly
at Embassy Riyadh and Consulate General Dhahran, cover a wide
spectrum of energy issues, including monitoring and reporting
on energy developments, developing and maintaining contacts
with high-level energy officials, and supporting U.S. based
energy-related investments in Saudi Arabia. Personnel
reported on new petroleum sector projects, management of
Saudi Aramco oil resources, and developments in the gas
sector. Personnel also invested significant resources
managing the OPEC relationship, and devoted a small but
increasing amount of time to emerging climate change,
renewable energy, and carbon sequestration issues.


4. (U) Since 2007, we have supported numerous high-level
energy delegations, including the Secretary of Energy in
January 2008, and several visits by Assistant Secretaries of
Energy. In 2008, the Mission also supported POTUS and VPOTUS
visits, whose visits had significant energy components. In
2007, the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs
conducted a formal meeting of the Energy Working Group, one
of six tracks of the US-Saudi Strategic Dialogue. The
Mission also supported technical delegations, such as the
2008 visit by the Department of Energy's Office of Fossil
Energy to the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum in
Dhahran. The Regional Security Officer in Dhahran invested
time on liaison work with Saudi Aramco officials concerning
security issues in the Eastern Province.


5. (U) The Mission provided significant coverage for
facilitation of visa and travel issues for high level Saudi
Aramco and SABIC company officials to travel to the U.S.,
including to conclude new investments in the Saudi
Aramo/Shell Port Arthur refinery. (Note that per reftel B
guidance, figures below do not include the direct Consular
costs of issuing visas, which are significant in Saudi
Arabia.) Other Economic Officers provided coverage on energy
issues in the absence of staff with core energy
responsibilities, and augmented staffing for visits of large
delegations.


6. (C) The Mission has made in-depth and significant human
resource investments in developing our bilateral critical
infrastructure protection (CIP) program. We have reported
frequently on this program. The Mission has supported
numerous expert-level visits, technical exchanges, and
vulnerability assessments by the Department of Energy's
Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability

RIYADH 00000592 002 OF 003


(DOE/OE),which also financed work by Sandia National
Laboratories and the Coast Guard. During these same
missions, we also supported the Department of State's
Counterterrorism Office (S/CT) and Diplomatic
Security/AntiTerrorism Assistance Office (DS/ATA) to
contribute their expertise.


7. (C) The Mission also spends increasing time working on
civilian nuclear power issues. We expect this to consume an
increasing human resource burden in the future.


8. (SBU) Personnel Costs not Included: Additional funds are
expended within Mission Saudi Arabia on energy issues via
offices such as the Foreign Commercial Service and the
Defense Attache. However, these are not Department of
State-sourced funds, and so have been omitted as per reftel B
parameters. Significant additional funds are also expended
by both the Department of State's Consular Affairs and the
Department of Homeland Security on the visa processing
function in support of the energy industry. Again, according
to reftel B parameters, we have not included these figures.

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Program Costs
--------------


9. (U) Program Costs: Program costs included travel costs
to support visiting delegations, lead working groups, and
attendance at relevant professional conferences. Mission
expended representational funding to maintain contact with
senior officials from the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral
Resources, Saudi Aramco, SABIC, and other entities relevant
to Saudi Arabia's energy sector, such as the Majlis ash
Shoura's (Consultative Committee) Economic and Energy
Committee, the Supreme Economic Council, and the Supreme
Petroleum Council.

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Many CIP Program Costs to Date Accounted
for in Washington
--------------


10. (C) Embassy Riyadh has worked intensively with the
Departments of Energy, State, Homeland Security, and Defense
to develop a critical infrastructure protection (CIP) program
in Saudi Arabia. As the technical and operational lead for
our CIP program, DOE's Office of Electricity Delivery and
Energy Reliability (DOE/OE) has expended significant program
funds for CIP in Saudi Arabia, in the areas of training,
technical exchanges, contingency planning, vulnerability
assessments, and related programs. DOE/OE has also supported
energy-related CIP work at Mission Saudi Arabia (both
Embassy Riyadh and ConGen Dhahran) with long-term TDY support
during the last year to a total of USD $21,306 to date.
While funded by DOE, not DOS, we note these costs in the
interests of fully documenting the energy program funds
expended at the Mission. Note these costs include only TDY
support costs incurred at Embassy Riyadh (principally TDY
housing),and do not/not include salary costs, which continue
to be paid out of DOE accounts in Washington. DOE/OE should
be contacted directly for additional information regarding
CIP program costs or DOE TDY personnel costs.


11. (C) Additional personnel costs for Saudi Arabian CIP
programs have also been supported by Department of State
offices, including S/CT, NEA/EX, DS/ATA, and the
PoliticalMilitary Bureau. The Department of Homeland
Security, particularly Coast Guard, and the Department of
Defense, including the Office of the Secretary of Defense and
CENTCOM, have incurred personnel costs for CIP programs.

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Qualifications of Key Personnel
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RIYADH 00000592 003 OF 003




12. (U) Embassy Riyadh:

Ambassador Ford Fraker - Ambassador Fraker enjoyed a more
than thirty year career as a banker in the Middle East,
including significant time in the management ranks of
Chemical Bank, Saudi International Bank, and Mees Pierson
Investment Finance. Ambassador Fraker has been involved in
the financing of numerous energy projects, including those in
Saudi Arabia. He founded Fraker and Company, and later the
Trinity Group Limited, a private investment bank, where he
served as Managing Director and Chairman at the time of his
appointment by the President as Ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

Deputy Chief of Mission - The DCM is a FE-OC Senior Foreign
Officer. He has formerly served as Political Counselor in
Riyadh, Deputy Director of the State Department's Office of
Regional Security and Arms Transfer, and DCM in Armenia and
Moldova. He also held a variety of Economic and
Political/Military positions, and served as advisor to the
Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq from 2003 to 2004.
He served as Natural Resources Officer at the U.S. Mission to
the European Union from 1992-1994, and as Energy Officer at
Embassy Moscow. The DCM holds a masters degree in Middle
Eastern Studies, and studied Arabic language and Islamic
history at the American University in Cairo. He is a full
member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a fluent
Arabic speaker.

Economic Counselor - The Economic Counselor is an FS-01
Foreign Service Officer, and has previously served in Iraq,
three previous tours in Saudi Arabia, and held economic
postings throughout the Gulf region. He holds two law
degrees, and also graduate degrees in Economics,
Administration, and International Affairs. He has served for
nine years in energy-related positions, including two years
as a resource analyst in the intelligence community, and six
years in field positions with substantial energy interest.
The Economic Counselor conducted research into energy issues
for one year as the faculty member of a war college.

Energy Attache/Deputy Economic Counselor - A FS-2 Foreign
Service Officer, the Energy Attache served two years as
Energy Officer in Nigeria during a volatile period in the
energy industry, prior to appointment in Saudi Arabia. The
Energy Attache has also served tours as the
Economic/Commercial Officer in Afghanistan and Mozambique,
and in Brazil. The officer holds a Masters of Business
Administration with a focus in international financial and
economic issues, and trained in petroleum issues at the
National Foreign Affairs Training Center.

Consulate General Dhahran:

Consul General - The Consul General in Dhahran is a FS-01
Foreign Service Officer and a 23-year veteran of the Foreign
Service, having served predominantly in the Middle East and
South Asia. He has served a previous tour in Saudi Arabia,
and covered energy issues previously in Yemen and Bangladesh.
He is a fluent Arabic speaker.

Political/Economic Officer - The Political/Economic Officer
is an FS-04 officer who previously served in Mexico, where he
covered energy issues in addition to other reporting issues.
He also speaks Arabic.
FRAKER