Today, the International Conference and Exhibition “Oil and Gas of Turkmenistan-2022” organized by State Concerns “Türkmengaz”, “Türkmennebit” and State Corporation “Türkmengeologiýa” in partnership with the Turkmen National Oil and Gas Company (NaPeCo), Turkmenbashi complex oil refineries, ES “Turkmen Forum” with the support of the British company “Gaffney Cline”, has opened its doors in the Industry and Commerce Chamber.

This major specialized forum, aimed at strengthening and developing international cooperation in the energy sector, is held not only in the traditional format, but is also broadcast from Ashgabat online to dozens of countries around the world.

The opening ceremony of the event was attended by members of the Government, heads of sectoral departments, heads of diplomatic missions accredited in Turkmenistan and authoritative international organizations, specialists from well-known oil and gas business structures and financial institutions, leading experts from companies involved in this field, representatives of public organizations, media, foreign guests, etc.

Representatives of foreign companies, large international organizations and banks joined the discussions on the digital system.

The forum brought together more than a hundred participants, including foreign representatives from almost 45 countries, who were acquainted with presentations on the formation of a strategy for the future of the international, regional and domestic fuel and energy industry, as well as review analytical materials on the state of affairs in the world oil market, marketing strategies in this area.

This year, more than 40 exhibitors placed their stands in the exhibition hall of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, of which more than 10 are foreign companies. In particular, from the Republic of Azerbaijan, Great Britain, Austria, the People's Republic of China, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, the Russian Federation, Singapore, the United States of America, the Republic of Turkey, Japan, etc.

It presents a wide range of products and services in the field of exploration, production, transportation and provision of hydrocarbon storage systems, deep drilling, modernization of existing and construction of new pipelines, building up oil and gas processing capacities, and increasing well productivity. A special place is given to the topic of offshore exploration and the formation of coastal infrastructure necessary for the implementation of projects in the Caspian Sea.

The exposition also includes eco-innovations and promising developments in the field of renewable energy sources, improving environmental safety at enterprises.

The main exhibitors include the State Concerns “Türkmennebit”, “Türkmengaz”, the State Corporation “Türkmengeologiýa”, as well as dozens of industry enterprises and private entrepreneurs working in the fuel and energy complex.

It should be noted that at the exhibition, the participants had a unique opportunity in the virtual reality mode, using technical means, to feel like an operator in the extraction of natural resources, to be present during the drilling of oil wells and the exploration of natural gas fields.

International Conference “Oil and Gas of Turkmenistan – 2022”, which began its work in the afternoon, covers such topical issues as global trends in the development of energy markets and opportunities for cooperation, development of existing and optimization of production at new oil and gas fields with the involvement of foreign investment, including for the development of offshore blocks of the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea.

As experts noted at the plenary session “The Future of the Energy System: New Challenges and Opportunities”, the current forum allows assessing the prospects for the development of energy diplomacy, the post-pandemic recovery of the energy sector, and the current state of the energy markets.

At present, the phased development of one of the world's largest deposits of “blue fuel” “Galkynyş”, as well as laying of the fourth branch of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline, continues. The priority aspect in the production of hydrocarbon resources is the development of licensed offshore blocks of the Turkmen shelf of the Caspian Sea through foreign investment.

During the plenary session, the floor has been given to the UN Resident Coordinator in Turkmenistan Dmitry Shlapachenko, President of SOCAR Rovshan Najaf, General Director of the Oil and Gas Corporation of Georgia Georgy Chikovani, President of CNPC Hou Qijun, Regional Director of the International Agency for Renewable Energy Energy Sources (IRENA) Dr. Binu Parthan, and Secretary General of the Energy Charter Guy Lenz.

Then the work of the conference continued on thematic sessions. The first one was “Investment Opportunities in the Turkmen Sector of the Caspian Sea”. The discussion was attended by Dragon Oil CEO Ali Rashid Al-Jarwan, Gaffney Cline Regional Director Drew Powell, Head of Russia and Central Asia Market Development at Eni S.p.A. Ernesto Ferlenghi, CEO of Schlumberger Logelco, Inc. in Turkmenistan Nasser Dilmaghani Zadeh; Natalie Costello, director of the advisory committee of Trans Caspian Resources, Inc., joined the discussion board via videoconference.

The conference will continue its work until October 28. The participants will discuss a wide range of issues at the thematic sessions “Investment opportunities in the Turkmen energy sector onshore and new gas chemical projects”, "New era energy: prospects for domestic and regional development", “Environmental aspects of the development of hydrocarbon fields”, “Innovative technologies and know-how in oil and gas science and education”.

The sessions, held in a hybrid format, will be attended by the heads and specialists of major specialized foreign companies and international financial organizations, as well as experts.

In addressing climate change, hydrogen is currently being promoted as an important fuel of the future. In industrial production, it can provide heat without generating greenhouse gases, since the calorific value of hydrogen is 3 times higher than that of other fuels. In addition, it can be used as an energy storage device. The positive qualities of this modern energy carrier are clean fuel with zero gas emissions, fast refueling, safety, efficiency, and competitiveness. Today, thanks to innovations in the energy technology infrastructure, hydrogen is beginning to “explore” new markets.

The sessions will also discuss issues of training highly qualified personnel for the oil and gas industry, including building up scientific potential, the role of research and development work in the development of the oil and gas industry.

Various renown companies of the world will make presentations, share their experience and new developments.

Within the framework of the conference, bilateral meetings are also planned, including online ones, between the heads of structural divisions of the domestic fuel and energy complex and their foreign partners to discuss strategic areas for further cooperation.