CAIRO - (Xinhua) The " Gas Exporting Countries " Forum expressed during a ministerial meeting in Cairo (Tuesday) its deep concern about attempts to change the natural gas pricing mechanism and impose maximum price limits for political motives, referring to a proposal by European countries to put a ceiling on the price of gas used in gas generation. electricity.

The forum said in a statement published by the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources on its official Facebook page that "the natural gas market is undergoing radical changes in terms of the quantities pumped, market conditions, and arrangements for contracts and investments."

The meeting was attended by energy ministers and senior officials from the member states, namely Egypt, Algeria, Bolivia, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela, as well as Angola, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Malaysia, Mozambique, Norway, Peru and the UAE as observers.

During the meeting, the representatives of the countries expressed "deep concern about attempts to change the gas pricing mechanism, manage the risks of market performance, and impose maximum price limits for political motives." Both".

The forum emphasized "the importance of cooperation and coordination among member states and support for clear and frank dialogue between producers, consumers and all relevant parties with the aim of ensuring the security of both supply and demand, in addition to ensuring transparency, fairness and openness of gas markets."

He explained that "the lack of investments since 2015 due to the decline in natural gas prices and misleading calls to stop investing in natural gas projects resulted in an imbalance in supply and demand, which exacerbated geopolitical tensions, and Europe has now become the preferred destination for LNG shipments to compensate for the quantities that have been reduced in pumping." In the pipelines, the market bottleneck is expected to continue in the medium term, as most of the new projects will be put on production after 2025.

During the meeting, a presentation was made on global gas, as natural gas contributes to the energy mix by 23% currently, which will increase to 26% in 2050, supported by population growth and the doubling of the total gross product.

The forum affirmed "its support for African countries in their struggle towards alleviating energy poverty," and called for "providing a balanced sharing of risks between producers and consumers, so that natural gas contributes to supporting the least developed and developing countries in their struggle to improve food security and raise energy poverty to ensure a fair and comprehensive energy transition."

He pointed to "the size of the huge investments required to meet the growing global demand for energy, the importance of pumping investments in a timely manner to ensure market stability, and the need to provide the necessary financing without obstacles and apply technology without discrimination."

He stressed "the importance of developing the basic energy infrastructure to ensure the free flow of gas and the stability of global gas markets, and condemning any deliberate attacks to harm them."

He pointed out the importance of enhancing cooperation in expanding the application of natural gas technologies such as carbon capture and storage, gas flaring, reducing methane and gas emissions in the transportation sector, and exploring new areas to benefit from the benefits of natural gas for hydrogen production.

Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El-Molla, Chairman of the Ministerial Council of the Forum in its 2022 session, said, "We are meeting today at this critical time, when all global efforts are directed towards achieving a triple goal of energy, which is security, sustainability and abundance of energy, and since natural gas is the cleanest hydrocarbon fuel that will continue to Because of its important role in the future of the energy mix, Egypt is eager to work with all member states of the forum to develop realistic and applicable initiatives through which energy security can be ensured.

During the meeting, Al-Mulla explained that "the tensions the world is witnessing caused turmoil in the energy markets," and noted the importance of the forum as one of the important platforms for dialogue on all activities of the natural gas industry, as the total gas reserves of the member states represent 72% of the global reserves of natural gas.

For his part, Mohamed Arkab, Algerian Minister of Energy and Mines, called for "innovative options and solutions to ensure the security of energy supplies, meet the growing demand for natural gas, and achieve a balance with the goals of sustainable development."

He pointed to Algeria's reforms regarding the hydrocarbons law, increasing its production capacities and its commitment to reducing carbon emissions to protect the environment.

For his part, Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said that "long-term gas contracts are one of the solutions to attract investments in gas projects and represent a protection network for supply and demand and the stability of the gas market."

He added, "The slowdown in the global economy since last February, the shift to a green economy, the decline in investments in the global gas industry, and the politicization of international gas trade have led to global instability."

He continued, "Europe's abandonment of Russian gas led to jumps in gas prices at high rates and negative consequences for consumers and producers, and these measures will undermine conditions and result in a negative impact on the economic situation," stressing that "the forum must remain neutral and aim to support the infrastructure."

Dr. Ramadan Abul-Ela, professor of petroleum engineering and vice-president of Pharos University in Alexandria, considered that the proposal of most European Union countries to set a limit on gas prices "does not correspond to logic or economics, because any commodity is subject to supply and demand and is not determined by a specific price."

Abu El-Ela told Xinhua that "the decision of the gas-exporting countries corresponds to the decision of OPEC Plus, which reduced production in order to achieve some kind of stability in oil prices, because the global economy is expected to decline, and thus the demand for oil and gas derivatives will decrease."

He stressed that "Europe cannot impose such an order on the producing countries, as this is almost impossible," and pointed out that "the European proposal is a kind of politicization of the gas trade."