Ashgabat Hosts the 28th OGT 2023 Conference & Exhibition
Ashgabat – The 28th International Conference and Expo “Oil and Gas of Turkmenistan” (OGT-2023) will be held in Ashgabat on October 25-27, 2023. OGT 2023 is organised by the State Concerns “Turkmengaz”, “Turkmennebit”, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan, and the State Corporation “Turkmengeology” in partnership with Turkmen Forum and UK-based GaffneyCline.
The conference and exhibition aim to strengthen the regional dialogue on further sustainable development of the energy sector, review the latest tendencies in the global energy system and expand the opportunities for attracting foreign direct investment to the oil and gas sector of Turkmenistan. The OGT Expo, which will run in parallel with the conference will present the best highlights from the domestic and global oil & gas industries, reinvigorated with new ideas and features to match the current industry agenda. New elements introduced at this year’s Expo put a key focus on highlighting the importance of acceleration of cooperation between IOCs and NOCs, reinforcing the growing role of mutually beneficial partnerships.
As decarbonisation is gaining pace across the globe, the next decade could see the end of coal use in Europe, as well as the continued phase-out of nuclear power and, gas and renewables will be called upon to meet increasing demand. Natural gas is expected to play an important role as a cost-effective transitional option to solve supply disruptions, being a suitable alternative from both an environmental and process chain point of view.
Turkmenistan is a major player in the Asian oil & gas market. The country’s hydrocarbon resources are estimated at over 71 billion tons of oil equivalent, that is over 20 billion tons of oil and over 50 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. Given these figures, as of today, Turkmenistan holds the world’s fourth-largest proven natural gas reserves, after Russia, Iran, and Qatar. Currently, Turkmenistan’s largest customer is the People’s Republic of China. Turkmenistan also supplies gas to Russia, Uzbekistan, Iran and swap supplies to Azerbaijan via Iran.
Turkmenistan is also proceeding with the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline. Despite the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing changes in the global markets, the TAPI countries continue to support the implementation of this project. The recent high-level meetings in Pakistan and Afghanistan have shown the readiness of the parties to accelerate the implementation of the TAPI pipeline. The 1,853-km pipeline will deliver up to 33 BCMA natural gas from the Galkynysh gas field in Turkmenistan to three off-take points in Afghanistan, three offtake points in Pakistan, and a final off-take point at the Pakistan-India border to supply the Indian market. The linear part of the Turkmenistan section of the TAPI pipeline is currently being commissioned.
Turkmenistan is actively developing its offshore fields in the Caspian Sea and onshore in the Balkan region. Currently, several leading IOCs are producing oil and gas from contractual areas in the Caspian Sea, among them: ENI, Dragon Oil, Petronas, and others. The cooperation between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan reached a major milestone with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the governments of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan on the joint exploration and development of hydrocarbon resources of the Dostluk field in the Caspian Sea. Successful development of this field will allow the supply of natural gas westwards to Europe.
The focus of this year’s conference will be the attraction of investment to offshore Blocks No. 21 and 23, West Cheleken, optimization of production from mature fields, and next phase development of the supergiant Galkynysh field, which is the largest onshore gas field in the world.
In parallel with the export of natural gas by pipeline, Turkmenistan is currently focusing on the deep processing of natural gas, which in the long term may become dominant in the country’s economy. In recent years, several gas chemical complexes have been commissioned, and soon, several more are planned to be built to produce value-added goods that are in high demand in global markets. Among them is the Kiyanly Polymer Plant in the Balkan region. The complex was built by a consortium of South Korean and Japanese companies and commissioned in October 2018. Another gas chemical complex is the Gas to Gasoline (GTG) plant in Ovadandepe near Ashgabat, which was commissioned in 2019, and was built by a Japanese-Turkish consortium. This plant is the unique flagship facility based on an advanced technology developed by Haldor Topsoe, a Danish company providing chemical process technologies and catalysts. The GTG plant is the only one of its kind worldwide that produces 600,000 tons of high-quality gasoline from natural gas annually. Gasoline is produced from methanol synthesized from natural gas and contains no heavy metals, so no toxic substances are emitted during its combustion. Moreover, because gasoline is 100% chemically synthesized from natural gas, it contains only small amounts of sulfur and other impurities and thus meets strict environmental standards. This recently completed GTG plant, along with a fertilizer plant completed by Kawasaki in 2014 in the eastern city of Mary (annual urea output: 640,000 tons), has been highly praised throughout the world for its contributions toward achieving high value-added products from natural gas resources.
Another facility that presents potential investment opportunities is the Turkmenbashy oil refinery – the flagship industrial complex located in west Turkmenistan. The refinery accounts for a quarter of the volume of industrial production in the country. Currently, it is undergoing phased reconstruction.
A key aspect of creating a solid legal framework in Turkmenistan is the adoption of the law of Turkmenistan “On Hydrocarbon Resources”, “On Currency Regulation”, “On Foreign Investments”, and “On Investment Activities”, which are aimed at creating a favourable investment climate in the country to attract long-term foreign investments and a state guarantee for reliable legal protection of investments and their return. Among the main factors of the growing attractiveness of Turkmenistan for foreign investors is the country’s stable economic and political situation, as well as the legislative framework and state guarantees.
In recent years, the UAE has become a strategic destination for global energy companies. Earlier in April, the Turkmen energy sector held a major investment forum in Dubai, which was attended by UAE government officials and CEOs of major global energy companies. The Forum was a great success and led to further strengthening of the ties between the Turkmen and the UAE energy companies. As noted by HE Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State of the UAE at the forum: «UAE seeks to widen its dynamic partnerships with Turkmenistan in the oil, gas, and renewable sectors through major investments by UAE companies such as ADNOC, Dragon Oil, and Masdar, amongst others».
The OGT 2023 organisers expect the participation of a record number of energy companies from the UAE. To date, more than 300 delegates from 23 countries have already confirmed their participation. Among the speakers of the OGT 2023 are the CEOs of the leading global energy companies and organisations, including the regional President for Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkiye of BP Gary Jones, President of SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers) Medhat M. Kamal, European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson, President of Baker Hughes in Russia and the CIS Elena Akoltseva, President of GHG Sat Stéphane Germain, ADNOC Vice President Jasper Peijs and others. OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) will be represented by the head of the Petroleum Research Department Behrooz Baikalizadeh, and the UN by the Director of the UN Sustainable Energy Division Dario Liguti.
More than 200 oil and gas and service companies have confirmed their participation at the OGT EXPO-2023. Among them are CNPC, Honhua, Rosen Group, Sumitomo, Dragon Oil, Petronas, Yug-Neftegaz, Tatneft, ENI, Rönesans, Schlumberger, Transneft, Interpipe, Kamaz, and many others.
The partners of the OGT 2023 include an impressive list of companies, such as Dragon Oil – Diamond Partner, CNPC – Platinum Partner, PEL Limited – Gold Partner, Yug-Neftegaz, Baker Hughes, Hyundai Engineering & Co., Mitro International – Silver Partners, Eni, Buried Hill, and Schlumberger – Bronze partners.
Participation and business meetings on the sidelines of OGT 2023 will increase the awareness of potential partners about new investment projects in the oil, gas, energy, and chemical complexes of Turkmenistan.
The Organising Committee will provide visa support to all registered delegates. Registration for participation in the conference is open until October 16, 2023. For information on the terms of participation in the conference, please visit the event website: www.ogt-turkmenistan.com or email info@turkmen-forum.com.
