Gas Exporting Countries Forum
Encyclopedia
The Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) is an intergovernmental organization of some of the world's leading natural gas producers. GECF members together control over 70% of the world's natural gas reserves, 38% of the pipeline trade and 85% of the liquefied natural gas
(LNG) production. The three largest reserve-holders in the GECF--Russia
, Iran
and Qatar
--alone hold about 57% of global gas reserves.
, Iran
, in 2001. Until the seventh ministerial meeting in Moscow
, Russia
, it operated without charter and fixed membership structure. The seventh ministerial meeting, held on 23 December 2008 in Moscow, adapted the organization's charter. At the same, it was decided to set up an Executive Office and a Secretariat in Doha
, Qatar
. On the eight ministerial meeting in June 2009, energy minister of Qatar Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah
was elected as the chairman (president) of the GECF and Algerian energy minister Chakib Khelil
was elected as vice-chairman. On the ninth ministerial meeting in December 2009, the vice-president of Russian energy engineering and construction company Stroytransgaz
Leonid Bokhanovsky was elected as Secretary-General. He was re-elected at the thirteenth ministerial meeting in December 2011.
. The Secretary-General is Leonid Bokhanovsky.
Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, following the thirteenth ministerial meeting held at the same place on 13 November 2011. Two main issues which were discussed a the summit, were natural gas prices and a common approach to the natural gas market. It was agreed on the summit that the price of gas used to generate electricity is too low and the gap between prices for gas and crude oil need to be narrowed. The linking of gas prices to the oil price was considered. However, the GECF will not set output limits for its members. The summit issued "Doha Declaration", which said that GECF members "recognized the importance of long-term gas contracts to achieve a balanced risk sharing mechanism between producers and consumers." Russian president Dmitry Medvedev
made a statement calling the summit "an important event, which marked a new stage in the development of the global energy sector and the gas sector in particular."
Russia has expressed its readiness to host the second summit of GECF.
which would set quotas and prices. The idea of a gas OPEC was first floated by then Russian President Vladimir Putin
and backed by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev in 2002. In May 2006 Gazprom
deputy chairman Alexander Medvedev
threatened that Russia would create "an alliance of gas suppliers that will be more influential than OPEC" if Russia did not get its way in energy negotiations with Europe. Iranian officials have explicitly expressed strong support for a gas cartel and held official talks with Russia. Cartel speculation was again raised when the ministers met on 9 April 2007. The 6th Ministerial Meeting of the GECF established an expert group, chaired by Russia, to study how to strengthen the GECF. According to the Algerian Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil
, this mean that in the long term the GECF will move toward becoming a gas OPEC. On 11 December 2009, Russia's Energy Minister Sergey Shmatko stated: "Today we can speak about gas OPEC as a fully fledged international organization. By a unanimous decision a Russian national was elected its secretary general. This is to show that member countries expect Russia to use its political weight to promote it."
Creation of the "Gas OPEC" was one of the topics of the first GECF's summit. However, some GECF's members are concerned over the gas exports to be politicized.
Liquefied natural gas
Liquefied natural gas or LNG is natural gas that has been converted temporarily to liquid form for ease of storage or transport....
(LNG) production. The three largest reserve-holders in the GECF--Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
and Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
--alone hold about 57% of global gas reserves.
History
The GECF was established in TehranTehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, in 2001. Until the seventh ministerial meeting in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, it operated without charter and fixed membership structure. The seventh ministerial meeting, held on 23 December 2008 in Moscow, adapted the organization's charter. At the same, it was decided to set up an Executive Office and a Secretariat in Doha
Doha
Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar...
, Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
. On the eight ministerial meeting in June 2009, energy minister of Qatar Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah
Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah
Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah is the Deputy Prime Minister of Qatar and the head of the Emir's court. He is the chairman of Qatar Petroleum and a board member of Al-Sadd Sports Club....
was elected as the chairman (president) of the GECF and Algerian energy minister Chakib Khelil
Chakib Khelil
Chakib Khelil is Algeria's Minister for Energy and Mines.He was born in Oujda on August 8, 1939, received a doctorate in petroleum engineering from Texas A&M University in 1968. After working in the United States for a few years, he joined Sonatrach in 1971, and became president of the Valhyd...
was elected as vice-chairman. On the ninth ministerial meeting in December 2009, the vice-president of Russian energy engineering and construction company Stroytransgaz
Stroytransgaz
OAO Stroytransgaz is a Russian engineering construction company in the field of oil and gas industry. The company was founded in 1990. It was originally a subsidiary of Gazprom, but now controlled by Gennady Timchenko though his Volga Resources SICAV SIF SA fund.-Operations:The company is involved...
Leonid Bokhanovsky was elected as Secretary-General. He was re-elected at the thirteenth ministerial meeting in December 2011.
Objectives
The objectives of the GECF are:- to foster the concept of mutuality of interests by favoring dialogue between producers, between producers and consumers and between governments and energy-related industries;
- to provide a platform to promote study and exchange of views;
- to promote a stable and transparent energy market.
Organizational structure
The highest body of the GECF is a ministerial meeting. In between of ministerial meetings, the work is organized through the Secretariat, headquartered in Doha, Qatar. The chairman of the GECF is Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah and the vice chairman is Chakib KhelilChakib Khelil
Chakib Khelil is Algeria's Minister for Energy and Mines.He was born in Oujda on August 8, 1939, received a doctorate in petroleum engineering from Texas A&M University in 1968. After working in the United States for a few years, he joined Sonatrach in 1971, and became president of the Valhyd...
. The Secretary-General is Leonid Bokhanovsky.
Ministerial meetings
The GECF has had thirteen ministerial meetings:| Meeting | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Tehran Tehran Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to... , Iran Iran Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia... |
2001 | |
| Algiers Algiers ' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000... , Algeria Algeria Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab... |
2002 | |
| Doha Doha Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar... , Qatar Qatar Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its... |
2003 | |
| Cairo Cairo Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life... , Egypt Egypt Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world... |
2004 | |
| Port of Spain Port of Spain Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population... , Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles... |
2005 | |
| Doha Doha Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar... , Qatar Qatar Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its... |
2007 | |
| Moscow Moscow Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent... , Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... |
2008 | |
| Doha Doha Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar... , Qatar Qatar Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its... |
2009 (June) | |
| Doha Doha Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar... , Qatar Qatar Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its... |
2009 (December) | |
| Oran Oran Oran is a major city on the northwestern Mediterranean coast of Algeria, and the second largest city of the country.It is the capital of the Oran Province . The city has a population of 759,645 , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately 1,500,000, making it the second largest... , Algeria Algeria Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab... |
2010 (April) | |
| Doha Doha Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar... , Qatar Qatar Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its... |
2010 (December) | |
| Cairo Cairo Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life... , Egypt Egypt Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world... |
2011 (June) | |
| Doha Doha Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar... , Qatar Qatar Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its... |
2011 (November) | |
Summits
Holding the GECF's summit was decided at the 10th ministerial meeting in Oran in 2010. The first GECF's summit was held in Doha on 15 November 2011, under patronage of EmirEmir
Emir , meaning "commander", "general", or "prince"; also transliterated as Amir, Aamir or Ameer) is a title of high office, used throughout the Muslim world...
Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, following the thirteenth ministerial meeting held at the same place on 13 November 2011. Two main issues which were discussed a the summit, were natural gas prices and a common approach to the natural gas market. It was agreed on the summit that the price of gas used to generate electricity is too low and the gap between prices for gas and crude oil need to be narrowed. The linking of gas prices to the oil price was considered. However, the GECF will not set output limits for its members. The summit issued "Doha Declaration", which said that GECF members "recognized the importance of long-term gas contracts to achieve a balanced risk sharing mechanism between producers and consumers." Russian president Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
made a statement calling the summit "an important event, which marked a new stage in the development of the global energy sector and the gas sector in particular."
Russia has expressed its readiness to host the second summit of GECF.
Membership
The members are Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela. Kazakhstan, Norway and the Netherlands are observers. Other countries like Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen have participated at different meetings. Yemen and Angola are interested to become members of the organization. The full membership will be granted by the approval of at least three quarters of all members.Gas OPEC
Since the establishment of the GECF in 2001 there has always been speculation that some of the world's largest producers of natural gas, in particular Russia and Iran, intend to create a gas cartel equivalent to OPECOPEC
OPEC is an intergovernmental organization of twelve developing countries made up of Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. OPEC has maintained its headquarters in Vienna since 1965, and hosts regular meetings...
which would set quotas and prices. The idea of a gas OPEC was first floated by then Russian President Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
and backed by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev in 2002. In May 2006 Gazprom
Gazprom
Open Joint Stock Company Gazprom is the largest extractor of natural gas in the world and the largest Russian company. Its headquarters are in Cheryomushki District, South-Western Administrative Okrug, Moscow...
deputy chairman Alexander Medvedev
Alexander Medvedev
Alexander Ivanovich Medvedev is the current Deputy Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of Russian energy company Gazprom, president of the Kontinental Hockey League, and the Director-General of Gazprom's export arm Gazprom Export...
threatened that Russia would create "an alliance of gas suppliers that will be more influential than OPEC" if Russia did not get its way in energy negotiations with Europe. Iranian officials have explicitly expressed strong support for a gas cartel and held official talks with Russia. Cartel speculation was again raised when the ministers met on 9 April 2007. The 6th Ministerial Meeting of the GECF established an expert group, chaired by Russia, to study how to strengthen the GECF. According to the Algerian Energy and Mines Minister Chakib Khelil
Chakib Khelil
Chakib Khelil is Algeria's Minister for Energy and Mines.He was born in Oujda on August 8, 1939, received a doctorate in petroleum engineering from Texas A&M University in 1968. After working in the United States for a few years, he joined Sonatrach in 1971, and became president of the Valhyd...
, this mean that in the long term the GECF will move toward becoming a gas OPEC. On 11 December 2009, Russia's Energy Minister Sergey Shmatko stated: "Today we can speak about gas OPEC as a fully fledged international organization. By a unanimous decision a Russian national was elected its secretary general. This is to show that member countries expect Russia to use its political weight to promote it."
Creation of the "Gas OPEC" was one of the topics of the first GECF's summit. However, some GECF's members are concerned over the gas exports to be politicized.
See also
- Energy superpowerEnergy superpowerThe term energy superpower does not have a clear definition. It has come to be used to refer to a nation that supplies large amounts of energy resources to a significant number of other states, and which therefore has the potential to influence world markets to gain a political or economic...
- Energy securityEnergy securityEnergy security is a term for an association between national security and the availability of natural resources for energy consumption. Access to cheap energy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven distribution of energy supplies among countries has led...
- Petrochemical Exporting Countries Forum