Energy diplomacy and pricing mechanisms for natural gas were the focus of an OSCE workshop that concluded in Ashgabat, OSCE Center in Ashgabat said on June 2.
The two-day event brought together representatives of Turkmenistan’s oil, gas, energy, economic and financial sectors.
The workshop addressed topics such as the main factors influencing the supply and demand curves, evolution of pricing mechanisms on international natural gas markets, as well as regional perspectives of current and future gas pricing mechanisms, the center said.
“Energy issues are crucial for national and international security, economic well-being and the environment, and energy diplomacy should be among the priorities of foreign policy of energy producing, transit and consuming countries,” Nana Baramidze, the Center’s Economic and Environmental Officer said.
The workshop was organized as part of the continuous support from OSCE to the government of Turkmenistan in the area of energy security, the center said.
International experts, as well as representatives from the Energy Charter and the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN) took part at the event.
The workshop participants discussed the development of regional markets and current trends in price formation in the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.
“Case studies enabled participants to examine several ways for gas from Turkmenistan to reach energy markets, its possibilities for market entry and relevant pricing mechanisms,” OSCE Center in Ashgabat said.
Turkmenistan joined OSCE on January 30, 1992. Several large international forums, including those on energy security have been recently held in Ashgabat.
Ashgabat considers it appropriate to intensify the energy dialogue within OSCE, to formulate the mechanisms for multilateral consultations on political, financial, economic, technological and environmental aspects of construction and operation of the multiple pipeline infrastructure.
The country has put forward several initiatives to ensure reliable and stable supply of energy resources to the world markets within the UN.
Turkmenistan ranks fourth for its natural gas reserves in the world and currently, it exports its gas to China, CIS countries and Iran. The possibility of constructing gas pipelines from Turkmenistan to the markets of South Asia and Europe is also being studied.
