The International Investment Forum Will Be Held On March 29-30 In Ashgabat And Dubai

This prestigious event will be carried out both in traditional and online formats.  It aims to attract foreign investment to the energy sector of Turkmenistan, and to develop and strengthen collaboration between the national energy companies of Turkmenistan and international partners.

The impressive list of delegates includes representatives of international energy companies including CNPC, SOCAR, Petronas, Areti, Dragon Oil, ENI, Çalik Enerji, Baker Hughes, Vitol, Mitro International, Westport Trading Europe Limited, Topsoe and NAPECO.  In addition, international energy organizations including the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the International Energy Agency (IEA), the French Gas Association and the Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) will also attend.  The Forum’s sessions and panel discussions will also be attended by representatives of numerous international financial and banking institutions, including: The Asian Development Bank, The Islamic Development Bank, The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc.

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Newly elected president of Turkmenistan, His Excellency Serdar Berdimuhamedov will open the conference and deliver his welcome address. The plenary session will focus on the future of global energy and will include a keynote address by the State Minister, Chairman of the State Concern «Turkmengas», plus presentations by HE Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, the Secretary General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC); Dmitry Shlapachenko, the United Nations Resident Coordinator for Turkmenistan; Natalia Gherman, the Special Representative of the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia; Jean-Marc Leroy, President of the French Gas Association; Tim Gould, the Chief Energy Economist of the International Energy Agency (IEA); and Mariam Almaszade, CEO, Socar Trading SA.

The first session entitled “The role of Turkmenistan in ensuring regional energy security” will be hosted in Turkmenistan’s pavilion at the World Expo in Dubai.  The session will be opened by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Turkmenistan to UAE, Serdarmammet Garajayev and followed by speeches from: Saeed Al Tayer, Managing Director and CEO of Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA); Ali Rashid Al Jarwan, Chief Executive Officer at Dragon Oil; Natalie Costello, Advisory Committee Director of Trans Caspian Resources, Inc.; and Muhammetmyrat Amanov, CEO of TPCL and others.

Energy security is a key requirement for global security and has many aspects.  Long-term energy security mainly deals with timely investments to supply energy in line with economic developments and environmental needs.  On the other hand, short-term energy security focuses on the ability of the energy system to react promptly to sudden changes in the supply-demand balance.  At the 65th session of General Assembly of the UN, the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov outlined some conceptual regulations to ensure international security.  In this regard, diversification of energy sources and construction of new transnational pipelines were identified as a top priority.

The Turkmen Leader used the example of the successful construction, completion and commissioning of the "Turkmenistan-China" and "Turkmenistan-Iran" gas pipelines.  The "Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India" (TAPI) gas pipeline is also one of the large-scale projects of strategic regional importance.  The implementation of this project is beneficial for all sides due to its multilateral importance in developing the region's economy, increasing employment, creating and improving infrastructure, plus keeping and strengthening sustainable development in the region.

Prospects for the development of offshore fields in the Caspian Sea and the latest update on the development of the world’s largest onshore gas field “Galkynysh”, located in South East Turkmenistan will also be discussed in this session.

The second session will focus on the opportunities for new era energy investment projects, and the Chairman of SC “Turkmennebit” will give his keynote address.  The session will also see presentations from the Chairman of SC “Turkmengeology”; Scott Foster, Director of UNECE's Sustainable Energy Division; Victor Nian, Senior Research Fellow of Energy Studies at the Institute of the National University of Singapore; Aganiyaz Jumayev, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs of the State Energy Institute of Turkmenistan, plus other CEOs of international energy companies.

Other key topics which will be covered during the session will include increasing gas exports to China; accelerating the construction of ‘Line D’ of the Turkmenistan/China gas pipeline; gas as a transitional fuel; the development of solar and wind energy, and hydrogen as a fuel of the future.

The provision of accessible energy to populations, while reducing its environmental impact on the planet, is one of the 21st century’s greatest challenges and it is no coincidence that currently renewables and natural gas industries are experiencing tremendous growth.  The numerous economic and environmental benefits of natural gas compared with oil and coal make it a perfect solution for the energy transition.

In order to decarbonize the energy sector, Turkmenistan is planning to implement a Roadmap for the development of international cooperation in hydrogen energy for 2022-2023.  This will allow the rapid development of a new industry with a significant multiplier effect for the Turkmen economy.  The National Strategy for the Development of Hydrogen Energy will involve international think‑tanks and research centers.

In 2021, Turkmenistan signed an agreement with the Abu Dhabi Development Fund for financing the construction of a $25 million hybrid solar-wind power plant with a capacity of 10 MW.  This project will be covered in detail during the Forum.  Arab Masdar, one of the world's leading companies in the field of renewable energy sources and Solar Investment, has formed a joint venture to develop clean energy projects aimed at their implementation in the CIS countries.

In Session 3, the role of financial institutions in supporting sustainable energy will be discussed.  The key speakers at this session will include: the Minister of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan; HE Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director General of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development; Chang Ching Yu, Country Director, Asian Development Bank Turkmenistan Resident Mission; Ibrahim Ali Shoukry, Head of Mission to Kazakhstan at the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group; Erich Arispe, Director of the Fitch Ratings' Sovereigns Group; and Rahymberdi Jepbarov, Chairman of the Board of the State Bank for Foreign Economic Affairs of Turkmenistan.

Experts will discuss the role of IFIs in promoting clean energy, how financial institutions can support energy companies in achieving the Paris Agreement, as well as the COP 26 goals in order to limit global warming.  Reducing methane and CO2 emissions, and the reduction of flaring to meet net zero, will be covered in Session 4, which is entitled: “Innovative technologies and know-how in the production of hydrocarbons and reducing associated gas emissions”.

Bayrammyrat Pirniyazov, Director of the Scientific Research Institute of Natural Gas under the SC “Turkmengas” will deliver a keynote address.  Other presentations will be made by: Bayrammyrat Atamanov, Rector of the Yagshygeldy Kakaev International university of oil and gas; Jonathan Stern, Professor and Distinguished Research Fellow & Founder of the Natural Gas Research Programme at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies; Igor Shewchenko, General Director of Mitro International Limited; and Mark Davis, CEO at Capterio.

The Turkmenistan government’s latest decision for curbing methane emissions in line with the COP 26 goals is for extinguishing the burning gas crater in the Darvaza region.  Potential solutions to the issue will be discussed in this session.  Several international organizations, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) have demonstrated great interest in supporting Turkmenistan in exploring possible technical and economic options for resolving this phenomenon and to stop these methane emissions.

Forum’s last session will focus on international cooperation in refining and transportation of hydrocarbons, and will see presentations of the Chairman of the SC “Turkmenhimiya”, Turkmenbashy Complex of Oil Refineries, Topsoe and other experts.

For more information, please visit event website: www.ogt-turkmenistan.com or email: info@turkmen-forum.com.

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