Ronan Bescond

Ronan Bescond was appointed Vice President Long-Term Marketing & Origination in January 2025. Previously, he was posted to Australia as TotalEnergies EP Australia Managing Director and Country Chair (2021-2025), to Mozambique as Vice President of Mozambique LNG and Country Chair (2019 - 2021), to Zimbabwe as Managing Director (2017 - 2019) and to TotalEnergies EP Asia Pacific as Deputy Vice President for Australia, Brunei and Malaysia (2014 - 2017). After obtaining his Master of Science from the Chemical Engineering School of Montpellier, France and the National University of Singapore, he joined the chemical branch of the TotalEnergies company in 1999 in Philadelphia, USA. He returned to Paris Headquarters in 2001 to join the Liquefied Natural Gas department of TotalEnergies Gas, Renewable and Power branch. He was involved in several LNG projects including Angola LNG, Qatargas I & II, Nigeria LNG and Oman LNG. In 2005, he became Corporate Finance and Treasury Manager in the holding of TotalEnergies SE in Paris, in charge of structuring and financing Gas, Renewables and Power activities in emerging markets, then of Exploration and Production activities in Africa. In 2010, he joined the Exploration and Production African Business Unit as Deputy to Vice President for Algeria, Egypt, Libya and Mauritania. He moved to Tripoli, Libya in 2011, as Business and Development Manager, and left Libya in July 2014.

Session Overview

Wednesday, 5 November

15:10

Natural Gas & LNG ICC Hall B 15:10 - 15:50

Financing gas and LNG: de-risking investment in a volatile landscape

Global natural gas and LNG projects face a complex convergence of financial, geopolitical, carbon intensity and market challenges that jeopardise their viability despite rising demand. Capital cost volatility, including tariffs on specialised materials, labour shortages and rising interest rates, make cost projections unreliable. Simultaneously, shifting government policies, export controls, and environmental regulations, including pauses on new export approvals, create ongoing uncertainty for investors.

To navigate current and future financing challenges, project developers will need to prioritise robust risk management, map clear long-term demand and profitability projections, cultivate secure, strong partnerships and contracts with buyers, and more. The U.S. market has seen renewed interest in debt lending and equity participation in LNG projects, with comparatively lower risk profiles and long-term returns.

However, critical questions remain: how can developers align financing strategies with diverse investor expectations? What makes a project attractive in today’s environment? And can project developers continue to secure equity partners to support timely FIDs and long-term resilience?

Attendee insights:

Explore the evolving capital landscape for natural gas and LNG, the strategies needed to de-risk investment, and how stakeholders are navigating the path to financing the next generation of supply projects.