GECF has no Cartel Intentions
The head of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) say that the organization has no intention of taking collective action to regulate natural gas pricing or production.
“There are two things that differentiate gas from oil. One is, its very nature vis-à-vis oil, and the second is that our statute at GECF has no intention of setting prices, quotas or production ceilings,” said Dr Seyed Mohamed Hossein Adeli, the GECF Secretary General.
Adeli said that with the share of the gas in the global energy mix projected to increase from around 22% to 25% or 26% over the next 20 years, his concern was more focused about “where the supply will come from.”
While significant production is projected to go on-stream over next five years, Adeli says that there will be no “glut” He cited project delays in East Africa and Australia and a GECF forecast, indicating that China will not be able to be a player in shale gas before 2030.
Adeli spoke about the need for a “premium on gas” because of its clean nature, pointing to the situation in Europe, where cheap coal is displacing gas in the energy mix as “concerning from an environmental standpoint”
“Europeans have the highest commitment to environmental concerns and given the fact that there are negotiations now on the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol, in 2015 you’re going to have a meeting to finalize all of these ceilings on greenhouse gas emissions. So from that point of view, there are problems,” commented the GECF chief.
“And I think that Europeans have not yet come to their own decision what they want to do with the energy policy and their energy mix. This is a big question mark for Europe.”
Speaking on the Russia-Europe gas dynamic, Adeli said that he believed that the largest provider to the European market will “do whatever it takes to show they are a reliable supplier.”
"Diversification of supply for Europe is not a new phenomenon; it’s been going on in Europe for the past 30 years but it’s important to see how the partnership with Russia will continue. But I’m optimistic, because of the interdependence of both these sides and the huge infrastructure, which is already in place.”
“Europe needs Russian gas and Russia needs European market.”
Members of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum are the world’s leading natural gas exporting countries: Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela, who control more than 73% of global gas reserves.