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On 16 December 2020, Dr Urban Rusnák, the Secretary-General of the International Energy Charter met with the delegation of high-level officials of the Republic of Armenia led by HE Mr Ara Aivazian, Minister of Foreign Affairs. Mr Hakob Vardanyan, Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure and HE Ms Anna Aghadjanian, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Armenia to the Kingdom of Belgium participated in the meeting. 

The parties addressed the...

On 21 December 2020, the International Energy Charter Industry Advisory Panel (IAP) held its 44^th Session. The event, which took place virtually through Zoom, was hosted by SOCAR and was attended by the Panel members, representatives of energy companies and associations.

The meeting participants were welcomed by Dr Urban Rusnák, the Secretary-General of the International Energy Charter, Murad Heydarov, Advisor to SOCAR President and CEO of SOCAR Balkans, and Rafael Cayuela,  IAP Chair and...

At the Ministerial Session of the 31st Meeting of the Energy Charter Conference, the Vice-Chair has delivered the Energy Charter Award for 2020.  Ms Carmen Sofía Sanz Estébanez was voted this year to be the recipient of the Award. Ms Sanz Estébanez is currently working as the Head of Cabinet of the Secretary of State for Environment at the Ministry of Ecological Transition in Madrid. Ms Sanz Estébanez has been the personality inseparable from the Energy Charter Process since 2012 when she was...

On 16 and 17 December, more than thirty Contracting Parties to the Energy Charter Treaty have convened for the 31st Meeting of the Energy Charter Conference, the governing and decision-making body for the Energy Charter process.  The Meeting of the Conference extended over two days starting with the Statutory Session primarily dedicated to the main priorities of the year: modernization of the Treaty and implementation of the Review 2019 conclusions. During this Session, the Contracting Parties...

On 8 December 2020, the International Energy Charter Industry Advisory Panel (IAP) welcomed COGEN Europe as its 67th member. 

COGEN Europe represents 13 national associations and 50 organisations in the entire value chain of the cogeneration industry. The vision of the organisation includes creation of a resilient, decentralised and carbon-neutral European energy system by 2050 with cogeneration as its backbone, empowering European citizens and industry to generate their own efficient, reliable...

On 12 November 2020, China Electricity Council (CEC)-International Energy Charter Joint Research Centre held its annual meeting via videoconference. The event brought together the members of the Steering Committee, Academic Board, representatives of CEC along with its member organisations and the Energy Charter Secretariat. 

Vice-President and Secretary General of CEC Mr. Yu Chongde and Secretary-General of the International Energy Charter Dr. Urban Rusnák opened the meeting by stressing the...

On 9 November 2020, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) invited the Energy Charter Secretariat to present the third edition of its flagship publication, the Energy Investment Risk Assessment (EIRA). The EIRA report aims to assist policymakers in reducing policy, regulatory and legal risks to investments in the energy sector. 

Dr. Ayed S. Al-Qahtani, the Director, Research Division and Chairman of the Academic Committee, opened the session. Mr Leonardo Sempértegui,...

On 3-6 November 2020, the Third Negotiation Round on the modernisation of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) was held by videoconference.[1]

Taking into account the list of agreed topics for modernisation of the ECT (see Conference Decision CCDEC 2018 18) and the suggested policy options (see Conference Decision CCDEC 2019 08), during the Third Negotiation Round held by the Modernisation Group, the following topics were addressed:

·         Pre-investment;

·         REIO;

·         Obsolete...

On 2 November 2020, the Energy Charter Secretariat and the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Uzbekistan acting as host and co-organizer this year, held in virtual fashion the 16th Meeting of the Taskforce on Regional Energy Cooperation in Central and South Asia.  The Taskforce, established in 2007, has been meeting ever since on an annual or biannual basis, gathering power sector professionals from the region and discussing matters related to electricity production, its import and export...

A virtual pre-intersessional meeting for UNCITRAL Working Group III will be held on Monday 9 November 2020 to explore the use of mediation in ISDS. This virtual pre-intersessional meeting discuss (1) overcoming challenges to the use of mediation in ISDS, (2) the multi-tiered dispute resolution process, (3) the hybrid models for resolving international investment disputes, as well as (4) the way forward for mediation as a reform option for ISDS.

You can find the agenda in this link.

The...

Transition to renewables in power generation, transport, heating and cooling: modern challenges and trends” was discussed at the Baku International Energy Charter Forum which was held on 28 October 2020 by the means of a videoconference. The Forum was jointly organized by the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Energy Charter Secretariat. Over 180 participants, including high-level government officials and leading experts from 40 countries, international organisations,...

There is increasing interest in the potential for mediation to resolve Investor-State disputes. This 3-day interactive, practice-based Investor-State Mediator Training, designed jointly by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the International Mediation Institute (IMI) and the International Energy Charter, will cover the context of investor-State disputes within the ISDS landscape and will provide experienced...

On 13 October 2020, OPEC, Energy Charter Secretariat and OPEC Fund jointly organized a legal workshop titled “Law of the Energy Transition”. This was the second joint event organized as a videoconference, following the very successful first workshop which took place in Vienna, Austria about a year ago.  

This year, the workshop focused on legal and regulatory aspects of energy transition and was composed of three principal sessions. The first session has dealt with legal and regulatory...

The Secretary-General of the International Energy Charter is gravely concerned by the escalation of violence between the 2020 and 2021 Chairmanships of the Energy Charter Conference - Azerbaijan and Armenia respectively.

He urges all parties involved to cease hostilities, to act in line with their international commitments and to refrain from any action that could affect critical energy infrastructure or significantly disrupt or interrupt the energy supply. 

The Secretary-General, Dr Urban...

On 14 October 2020, the Energy Charter Secretariat in cooperation with the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Secretariat organised a technical workshop on the topic of “Perspectives and Challenges of Regional Electricity Markets: Harnessing Trade and Investment Opportunities”. The event brought together over forty government officials and energy experts from eight ECO Member States, international and regional organisations. 

The objective of the workshop was to discuss international...