The 28th meeting of the International Energy Charter Conference has opened in a conference hall of Ashgabat’s Oguzkent Hotel as Turkmenistan holds the chairmanship of the organization in the running year.
Among those in attendance were top officials and representatives of sectoral ministries and agencies from foreign member-countries and countries with observer status, a number of reputable international and regional organizations, local and foreign media.
The Turkmen capital, which welcomed over 200 delegates from 50 countries, has once again confirmed its high status as an authoritative international meeting ground used to discuss the present state and global development trends, including global energy issues.
Attending the forum from the Turkmen side were government members, senior executives and representatives of relevant ministries and agencies, and others.Heads of the diplomatic missions accredited to Turkmenistan were also participants in the meeting.
Turkmenistan’s energy policy is aimed at the integrated development of the country’s fuel and energy sector and its dynamic integration into the global energy system.In line with the Concept of the Chairmanship, this year our country has taken a series of comprehensive measures to accelerate the process of working out a new international legal mechanism for sustainable energy.
In this context, Turkmenistan reaffirms its support for the activity of the expert group responsible for the preparation of multilateral energy security documents and creation of an international sustainable energy system.
At today’s plenary meeting, attendees were introduced to the legal aspects of partner relations between energy producing countries, transiters and consumers.In their speeches, many forum participants, in particular Minister of Energy and Petroleum of Gambia Fafa Sanyang, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology of Nigeria Dr.
Amina Mohammed Bello Shamaki, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Energy Dr.Matar Al Neyadi, and others, emphasized the importance of the issues listed on the agenda of the 28th meeting of the International Energy Charter Conference.
As noted, the general principles of future global development embrace the promotion of international partnership in this sphere, the creation of modern energy architecture, its security and sustainability.A high-level dialogue, ongoing in this field, is now taking on a more meaningful and comprehensive character with new member-states, companies, international agencies and organizations engaged in it.
With rapid advances in technology, recent years have seen high growth in renewable energy deployment.As the cleanest and safest for the environment of all the hydrocarbon fuels, the share of natural gas in the primary energy market is expected to increase, and it is likely to replace coal in the next few years and oil in the long term.
Special emphasis was placed on the importance of ensuring safe transit through transcontinental pipelines.The forum participants shared the opinion that today the global community has to tackle the major task of working out new mechanisms for achieving the objectives.
Foreign experts, consultants, top managers of big companies, participating in the Ashgabat meeting of the International Energy Charter Conference, presented their views on strategic measures aimed to evaluate investment risks in the energy sector, and analyzed pressing issues, development schemes for the global energy market, and its emerging trends.
The forum also focused on some other organizational issues, including the adoption of the Conference Program, a list of presiding countries for 2018-2020, a preliminary schedule of meetings for 2018, and others.
The International Energy Charter Conference will continue tomorrow. *** Today, top officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan have held meetings with Energy Charter Secretary General Dr.Urban Rusnak and OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger on the sidelines of the forum to discuss issues of strengthening the fruitful partnership.
The following documents were signed during the forum: a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and the Energy Charter Secretariat on Enhanced Cooperation; a Protocol of Exchange of Instruments of Ratification of the Agreement between Turkmenistan and the Federative Republic of Germany on the Avoidance of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and Property.