Full Text of Declaration of GECF Summit in Tehran

The 3rd Summit of Heads of State and Government of GECF Member Countries concluded late on Monday with a declaration in which they vowed to enhance efforts in joint investments for providing efficient and reliable natural gas supply to world markets.

The full text of the declaration is as follows:

We, the Heads of State and Government of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) gathered in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran on November 23, 2015, upon the invitation extended by HE Dr. Hassan Rouhani, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran to meet for our Third GECF Gas Summit in the spirit of solidarity and cooperation:

(i) Reaffirming the absolute and permanent sovereignty of GECF Member Countries over their natural gas resources and their commitment to the principles and objectives of the statute of the Forum;

(ii) Recalling the declarations of the First Summit in Doha, State of Qatar on November 15, 2011, and the Second Summit, held in Moscow, the Russian Federation on July 1, 2013;

(iii) Cognizant of the Member Countries abilities, as reliable exporters of natural gas, to plan and manage effectively the development of their natural gas resources and to contribute to enhancing the security of natural gas supply;

(iv) Acknowledging the importance of Gas Energy and Financial market stability in ensuring sufficient investments in current and future natural gas projects;

(v) Highlighting the importance of cooperation and coordination among Member Countries through exchange of information on gas industry and sharing of best practices as well as collaborative actions in promoting the use of natural gas worldwide;

(vi) Emphasizing the benefits of natural gas as a clean and abundant energy source and its potential contribution to global sustainable development;

(vii) Stressing the importance of a fair and reasonable value for natural gas resources in a level playing field environment in the face of challenges posed by economic and political uncertainties as well as environmental concerns;

(viii) Recognizing that the rising demand for natural gas driven by population growth, economic growth and environmental considerations calls for a greater focus on the security of demand and supply and the application of stable, reliable, and transparent market mechanisms free of politically motivated restrictions and unilateral decisions and interventions;

(ix) Underscoring the need to support a collaborative approach and mechanism of policy coordination and strategy alignment on the world gas markets to enhance the prosperity and welfare of the member countries.

Declare our common determination to:

1. Support the common interests of GECF Member Countries by implementing coordinated policies and strategies at the international level to enhance the overall socio-economic benefits of their natural gas resources.

2. Promote natural gas consumption as the cleanest fossil fuel with a vital role in the global energy mix aiming to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for a clean, reliable and efficient source of energy. The message is to be conveyed by the Secretary General on the occasion of the 3rd GECF Gas Summit (The message to COP21 to be conveyed through the Secretary General).

3. Enhance efforts in joint investments among Member Countries with the aim of providing efficient and reliable natural gas supply to world markets.

4. Emphasize the fundamental role of long-term gas contracts in financing large-scale gas projects along the value chain, and develop contractual frameworks, taking into account the extensive efforts, investments, commitments and risks undertaken by Member Countries.

5. Promote an open and constructive dialogue with natural gas importers through international and regional energy organizations and fora on the issues including demand for natural gas and necessary cross-border gas infrastructure development with the purpose of sharing risks equitably between suppliers and consumers of natural gas through implementation of predictable and non-discriminatory fiscal, trade, energy, and environmental policies respecting the national legal and policy framework of each country.

6. Enhance and strengthen cooperation, coordination and exchange of views among Member Countries and all stakeholders in the industry to achieve the GECF objectives, inter alia through the creation of a GECF Gas Research Institute, subject to satisfactory feasibility study result, recalling that the location of the Institute shall be in Algeria, as well as cooperation in the fields of technology, logistics, management and development of human resources in order to promote efficiency, innovation, technology transfer and international best practices.

7. Acknowledge the need to take a risk sharing approach to the issue of price formation and pricing mechanism with the linkage to crude oil and its products for natural gas in long term contracts to ensure timely investment in the gas chain and recognize the need to reach a fair and reasonable price for natural gas taking into account the nature of natural gas as a non- renewable and exhaustible resource as well as its advantages in terms of energy efficiency and environmental premiums.

8. Express our deep concern about extraterritorial application of laws and regulations and our objection to unilateral economic sanctions in gas trade and against GECF Member Countries that are not authorized by the relevant organs of the United Nations.

9. Strengthen the role of the GECF, as a platform for defining and advancing the Member Countries’ position on challenges in the global energy scene.

10. Urge the GECF to develop new and effective dialogue between Member Countries, consuming countries and gas industry stakeholders to promote market transparency, stability and to facilitate transfer of technology in the interests of Member Countries.

The Heads of State and Government of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum extend their appreciation to His Excellency Dr. Hassan Rouhani, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran for his excellent leadership of the 3rd GECF Gas Summit and the Government and People of I.R. Iran for their warm hospitality.