KUNA reported that the ministers of oil and energy of the Gulf Cooperation Council member states agreed to boost cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector and the alternative energies.

The 30th ordinary meeting of GCC ministerial committee on oil cooperation, chaired by UAE minister of oil Mr Mohammad bin Dha'en Al Hameli, was attended by GCC secretary general Dr Abdul Latif Al Zayyani.

The meeting approved the recommendations of the earlier meeting of the undersecretaries of the GCC oil ministries on the draft amendments to the internal system of the ministerial committee.

It also approved the report of the GCC Secretariat on the resolutions of the 14th session of the GCC Supreme Council relating to the development of alternative energies and renaming such energies as complementary energies. The ministers urged adopting the GCC single code on mining as a three year guideline for the GCC member states providing that each state would develop its own executive statutes.

They approved the GCC oil strategy as a guideline plan which is subject to revision triennially. They also adopted the GCC strategy for oil media as an appendix of the oil strategy. They agreed to follow up on the implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the attached Kyoto Protocol.

After being briefed on the memorandum of the GCC Secretariat on the meetings of a GCC team with World Trade Organization, the ministers decided to hold a biannual workshop on trade liberalization in a GCC member state alternately.

During the meeting, the state of Kuwait invited the conferees to attend the energy forum, due in March alongside with the delegates of more than 60 countries to address the world energy problems.

Kuwait's delegation to the meeting was led by Minister of Oil and Minister of State for National Assembly Affairs Dr Mohammed Mohsen Al Busairi.

(Sourced from KUNA)