DOHA — Major gas exporting nations said Tuesday they
could not guarantee prices or supplies at a summit overshadowed by the
worsening Ukraine crisis which has pushed costs to record highs in Europe.
اضافة اعلان
Qatar's emir, who hosted the talks, said gas producers were
working to ensure "credible and reliable" supplies, on the same day
as Europe's concerns over deliveries from Russia were further hit by Germany's
decision to halt the
Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.
The Gulf state's energy minister said his country would help
Europe as much as possible, but that the unprecedented prices paid by Europe's
consumers were "in God's hands".
Leaders and ministers from the 11-member
Gas Exporting Countries Forum met after Russian President Vladimir Putin formally recognized
two breakaway regions of Ukraine as independent and sent in troops. Germany
responded by freezing the huge gas pipeline from Russia.
With Russia a key member of the exporters' forum, the
Ukraine crisis was not mentioned in talks, officials said, or the final
statement.
Russia's Energy Minister Nikolay Shulginov made no reference
to the tensions but he told the forum that "
Russian companies are fully
committed to existing contracts" for gas supplies.
The US has asked Qatar to help Europe if Russian supplies
are cut, but its Energy Minister Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi said his country could
not rescue Europe alone.
Russia accounts for about 40 percent of the European market
and
Qatar five percent.
It would be "virtually impossible" for one country
to replace that amount of gas, Kaabi told a news conference. Qatar's supplies
are also tied up in long-term contracts, many with Asian countries including
Japan,
South Korea and China.
"We are supportive of the EU and we are ready to supply
whatever is possible from our side and the volume that will be available while
abiding by contracts," Kaabi said.
The minister estimated that 10-15 percent of shipments under
Qatar's long-term contracts could potentially be diverted.
But he insisted that the record prices in
Europe had their
roots in a lack of investment before the Ukraine crisis.
'Preserve stability of markets'
Qatar and other producer nations want long-term contracts of
up to 25 years to "underpin" the huge investments made in extracting,
processing and transporting gas.
"Everything that is going on today in pricing is
fundamentally because of a lack of investments and that will take time to catch
up," Kaabi said.
Asked whether
European consumers would have to pay more
because of the Ukraine crisis, he said: "Predicting how prices will be,
(whether they) will go up or down, that is in God's hands not mine."
The summit statement made no mention of increasing supplies
and instead stressed the "fundamental role" of long-term contracts
and linking gas prices to oil values to bolster investment.
But Qatar's emir,
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, said
forum countries were "working hard to ensure a credible and reliable
supply of natural gas to world markets and preserve the stability of those
markets".
The emir said the forum wanted more intense talks with gas
importers "to ensure the security of
natural gas supplies and the
stability of global gas markets".
Even before the sharp rise in energy prices over the past
year, major gas-producing nations had said they needed long-term contracts to
guarantee supplies to consumers.
The EU has until recently resisted the 10, 15 and 20-year
contracts typical in the industry. Qatar and others say long-term deals are
necessary to cover the massive investment needed to increase production.
The summit was also attended by presidents and prime
ministers from Algeria,
Iran, Mozambique, Equatorial Guinea and Trinidad and
Tobago.
Iran's President
Ebrahim Raisi said his country wanted to
increase production and exports but was being held back by what he called
"cruel and unnatural" US sanctions against his country.
Major powers are negotiating with Iran to revive an accord
regulating its controversial nuclear program that could provide relief from the
crippling sanctions.
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