CAIRO, October 25. /TASS/. Attempts to cap natural gas prices because of political motives are detrimental for producers and consumers, participants in the 24th Ministerial Meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum said in their joint statement.
The Ministers "expressed great concern with regard to the attempts to alter the price discovery and risk management functions of markets, and to impose politically-driven price caps," the statement reads. "Such artificial intervention in market functioning can only aggravate market tightness, discourage investment, and be detrimental to producers and consumers alike," the Ministers noted.
"Natural gas markets are undergoing dramatic changes in terms of physical flows, market functioning, contractual arrangements, and investment," the GECF Ministers said. Gas hubs experience serious fluctuations while long-term contract prices are more stable, they noted.