Laurent is a leading authority on the gas industry in Europe and Eurasia, with a special focus on gas supply and transportation and a regional focus on the Caspian Sea region, southeastern Europe, Turkey, Ukraine and the Eastern Mediterranean. He has published client research on topics including EU gas regulation, Russian-Ukrainian gas arbitration, and the gas sectors in Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. He has worked for more than two decades advising international oil and gas companies and institutional investors on energy investment in Eurasia, and has led assignments in which S&P Global served as Lenders' Market Consultant in support of project financings on numerous occasions. Laurent first joined CERA (a predecessor company of S&P Global) in 1991 and led CERA's Caspian Energy practice from 1997 to 2003. Laurent co-managed the Caspian Development Corporation project carried out for the World Bank and European Commission (DG Energy) during the period 2009-2011. From 2006 to 2008, Laurent was based in Baku, Azerbaijan as Director of Business Development and head of strategy for a company in the oil transportation sector.

A Russian speaker, Laurent holds a B.A. with honors in Russian and Soviet Studies from Harvard University (Cambridge, USA), and he passed comprehensive examinations in the Ph.D. program in Political Science at Columbia University (New York, USA).