Energy Minister Khan Appointed President of the GECF at Russia Meeting
Senator the Honourable Franklin Khan, Minister of Energy and Energy Industries, led a delegation from Trinidad and Tobago that participated at the 19th Ministerial Meeting (MM) of the Gas Exporting Companies Forum (GECF) on October 4, 2017 in Moscow, Russian Federation. The meeting was chaired by His Excellency(HE) Alexander Novak, Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation, as President of the Ministerial Meeting, and HE Gabriel Mbaga Obiang Lima, Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea as Alternate President.
The Meeting was attended by all member countries : Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. The Netherlands, Norway and Oman also attended as observers.
The Ministers of Energy and Heads of Delegations of the Member Countries considered pertinent analyses and recommendations from the Secretariat and the Executive board including, but not limited to, the Short Term Market Analysis Report, the Five Year Working Plan for the implementation of the Long Term Strategy of the GECF, and the 2017 edition of GECF Global Gas Outlook 2040.
The Member Countries discussed developments, opportunities and challenges of global energy markets and reiterated their resolve to pursue the promotion of natural gas as an affordable, accessible, reliable and clean source of energy and a key contributor in responding to environmental targets arising from the Paris Agreement.
At the 19th MM, the Minister of Energy and Energy Industries of Trinidad and Tobago, Senator the Honourable Franklin Khan, was appointed as the President of the Ministerial Meeting and the Executive Board Member of Trinidad and Tobago was appointed as the Alternate Chairman of the Executive Board for the year 2018. As President of the GECF, Trinidad and Tobago will host the 20th Ministerial Meeting on November 14, 2018.
In the margins of the 19th MM of the GECF, HE Minister Franklin Khan held a bilateral meeting with the Minister of Petroleum of Venezuela, HE Minister Eulogio Del Pino. They discussed continued energy cooperation on the advancement of the development of all cross border hydrocarbon reservoirs, in particular, the Loran-Manatee and other cross-border fields in the Plataforma Delatana and the supply of natural gas from the Dragon field in the Marisal Suave region.