Abstract
The main focus of the studies, which have been conducted mainly by experts from gas-consuming countries, is to evaluate and measure the impact of this forum on the price of natural gas in the main consumer markets. Unfortunately, the issue of homogeneity or heterogeneity of members and the role that this issue can play in the success of the policies and goals of this organization has received less attention. In this chapter, the authors first show the heterogeneity of members and then, with the help of appropriate indicators, rank member countries in influencing policies and achieving the goals of the assembly in the short, medium, and long term. Based on the presented indicators, it can be concluded that Russia, Qatar, and Algeria are the countries that play the most important role in influencing the policies of the assembly in the short and medium-term, while Russia, Qatar, and Iran, respectively, are three influential members in the long-term policies of the assembly.
TopIntroduction
Currently, the Assembly of Gas Exporting Countries consists of 13 gas producing and exporting countries in alphabetical order: Algeria, UAE, Iran, Bolivia, Trinidad and Tobago, Russia, Oman, Qatar, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Egypt, Nigeria. And Venezuela. Iraq, Kazakhstan, Norway, and the Netherlands are observer members of the forum. It can be seen that with such a set of countries, this forum can be a powerful organization in the global gas market and play a more active role in the global energy market compared to international energy organizations. At present, the strong position of the assembly is due solely to the large reserves of natural gas that its members hold. About 63% of the world's natural gas reserves are geographically located in the member states of the assembly. It also owns 39% of the natural gas trade by pipeline and 65% of global LNG production and trade. The three main members of the forum, Iran, Russia, and Qatar, hold about 50% of the world's natural gas reserves(Lu et al., 2019).
This forum is a group of large natural gas producers formed with the characteristics of an international and governmental organization to improve coordination and strengthen the cooperation of the member countries. Another goal of this forum is to design a mechanism for the fruitfulness of the dialogue between gas producers and consumers to ensure the stability and security of supply and demand in natural gas markets. According to the Statute of the Assembly, the mission and purpose of the assembly are defined as follows: “To protect the sovereignty of member states over their natural gas reserves and the capabilities of each member in independent planning and management for sustainable development, Exploitation and protection of natural gas reserves for the benefit of the people of each member state.”
This chapter has tried to examine the appropriate conditions for achieving this goal according to the assembly structure. In other words, the key question in this chapter is whether this organization has a homogeneous and homogeneous structure to achieve this common goal? After reviewing the research background in the second part, we examine the position of the member countries of the assembly in terms of key indicators in the oil and gas sectors, which is the subject of the third part of this chapter. In the fourth section, we introduce the indicators related to the classification of countries, and in the fifth section, we examine the member countries in terms of their impact on the assembly policies and provide an integrated analysis in this regard. The conclusion of this chapter is the subject of the sixth section.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Sustainable Development: Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while simultaneously sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The desired result is a state of society where living conditions and resources are used to continue to meet human needs without undermining the integrity and stability of the natural system. Sustainable development can be defined as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainability goals, such as the current UN-level Sustainable Development Goals, address the global challenges, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace, and justice.
Circularity: A circular economy (also referred to as “circularity”) is an economic system that tackles global challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution. Most linear economy businesses take a natural resource and turn it into a product that is ultimately destined to become waste because it has been designed and made. This process is often summarised by “take, make, waste.” By contrast, a circular economy uses reuse, sharing, repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing, and recycling to create a closed-loop system, minimize resource inputs, and create waste, pollution, and carbon emissions. The circular economy aims to keep products, materials, equipment, and infrastructure in use for longer, thus improving the productivity of these resources. Waste materials and energy should become input for other processes through waste valorization: either as a component or recovered resource for another industrial process or as regenerative resources for nature (e.g., compost). This regenerative approach contrasts with the traditional linear economy, which has a “take, make, dispose of” production model.
Eco Commerce: Eco commerce is a business, investment, and technology-development model that employs market-based solutions to balance the world’s energy needs and environmental integrity. Through green trading and green finance, eco-commerce promotes the further development of “clean technologies” such as wind power, solar power, biomass, and hydropower.
Green Economy: A green economy is an economy that aims at reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities and that aims for sustainable development without degrading the environment. It is closely related to ecological economics but has a more politically applied focus. The 2011 UNEP Green Economy Report argues “that to be green, and an economy must be not only efficient but also fair. Fairness implies recognizing global and country-level equity dimensions, particularly in assuring a Just Transition to an economy that is low-carbon, resource-efficient, and socially inclusive.”
Green Politics: Green politics, or ecopolitics, is a political ideology that aims to foster an ecologically sustainable society often, but not always, rooted in environmentalism, nonviolence, social justice, and grassroots democracy. It began taking shape in the western world in the 1970s; since then, Green parties have developed and established themselves in many countries around the globe and have achieved some electoral success.
Environmental Enterprise: An environmental enterprise is an environmentally friendly/compatible business. Specifically, an environmental enterprise is a business that produces value in the same manner which an ecosystem does, neither producing waste nor consuming unsustainable resources. In addition, an environmental enterprise rather finds alternative ways to produce one’s products instead of taking advantage of animals for the sake of human profits. To be closer to being an environmentally friendly company, some environmental enterprises invest their money to develop or improve their technologies which are also environmentally friendly. In addition, environmental enterprises usually try to reduce global warming, so some companies use environmentally friendly materials to build their stores. They also set in environmentally friendly place regulations. All these efforts of the environmental enterprises can bring positive effects both for nature and people. The concept is rooted in the well-enumerated theories of natural capital, the eco-economy, and cradle-to-cradle design. Examples of environmental enterprises would be Seventh Generation, Inc., and Whole Foods.
Low-Carbon Economy: A low-carbon economy (LCE) or decarbonized economy is based on low-carbon power sources with minimal greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions into the atmosphere, specifically carbon dioxide. GHG emissions due to anthropogenic (human) activity are the dominant cause of observed climate change since the mid-20th century. Continued emission of greenhouse gases may cause long-lasting changes worldwide, increasing the likelihood of severe, pervasive, and irreversible effects for people and ecosystems.
Emissions Trading: Emissions trading (also known as cap and trade, emissions trading scheme, or ETS) is a market-based approach to controlling pollution by providing economic incentives for reducing the emissions of pollutants.
Eco-Tariffs: An Eco-tariff, also known as an environmental tariff, is a trade barrier erected to reduce pollution and improve the environment. These trade barriers may take the form of import or export taxes on products with a large carbon footprint or imported from countries with lax environmental regulations.
Natural Resource Economics: Natural resource economics deals with the supply, demand, and allocation of the Earth’s natural resources. One main objective of natural resource economics is to understand better the role of natural resources in the economy to develop more sustainable methods of managing those resources to ensure their future generations. Resource economists study interactions between economic and natural systems intending to develop a sustainable and efficient economy.