The Second Ministerial Meeting of the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF) was held in Cairo on July 24-25, as per the invitation of H.E Eng. Tarek El Molla, the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Egypt Oil & Gas reports.

The Egyptian, Cypriot, Greek, Palestinian, Israeli, and Italian energy ministers, as well as a representative of the Jordanian Minister of Energy, attended the meeting, representing the founding members of the regional forum.

US Energy Secretary Rick Perry also attended the meeting as a special guest of honor, alongside the representatives of France, the European Union, and the World Bank.

The ministers decided on the forum’s governing rules and procedures and committed to achieving the goal of enhancing regional cooperation in the energy sector and make the best use of available resources, paving the way for a sustainable regional natural gas market.

Members assured their commitment to upscale the forum into an international organization that fully respects the sovereign rights of its members in their natural resources, in accordance with the international law.

In order to allow the participation of the private sector, EMGF members approved the establishment of an advisory committee for the gas industry, according to the meeting’s final communique.

Furthermore, the meeting discussed cooperation to gradually develop the natural gas infrastructure in the region to accelerate the economic utilization of current reserves and facilitate future discoveries.

The participating delegations expressed their gratitude for the Arab Republic of Egypt and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi for hosting the meeting, the generous hospitality, and the outstanding organizing.

Egypt, Cyprus, Greece, Jordan, Palestine, Israel, and Italy are the founders of the EMGF. The seven countries decided in January to establish the forum in Cairo, which emphasized the transformation of Egypt into a leading center for natural gas trade and the region’s energy hub.

The next EMGF Ministerial Meeting will be held in Cairo during the second half of January 2020.