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Competition between gas producers should be minimised – GECF SG

The three largest reserve-holders in the GECF -- Russia, Iran and Qatar -- alone account for about 57 percent of global gas reserves

MOSCOW, November 17 (Itar-Tass) —— Competition among gas producing countries must be minimised, Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) Secretary-General Leonid Bokhanovsky said.

“We prefer to find ways to minimise competition among gas producing countries. It must be reduced wherever possible to reasonable levels,” Bokhanovsky told Russia Today.

In his opinion, “There is lot of other options for the development of gas markets.”

Among them he named the Asian market, which has been lately showing a rapid and stable growth, the Latin American market, specifically Brazil, and Chile, which has been buying more and more natural gas and where, according to Bokhanovsky, “there are good prospects for cooperation” among gas producers.

In addition, “there are possibilities for good cooperation in swap operations and optimisation of logistical services”, he said.

The Gas Exporting Countries Forum is an intergovernmental organisation formed by some of the world's leading natural gas producers. GECF members together control over 70 percent of the world's natural gas reserves, 38 percent of the pipeline trade and 85 percent of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) production.

The three largest reserve-holders in the GECF -- Russia, Iran and Qatar -- alone account for about 57 percent of global gas reserves.

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