The Secretary-General, Mr. Guy Lentz, held a series of high-level meetings on the margins of his participation in the 13th Session of the IRENA Assembly.
On Friday 13 January 2023, Mr. Lentz met with Mr. Francesco La Camera, Director General of IRENA, and discussed with him means of cooperation and joint projects – IRENA being an observer of the Energy Charter Conference since 2014.
On the same day, the Secretary-General also met with Dr. Nawal Al Hosani, the Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to IRENA and discussed with her the means to strengthen relations between both international organisations.
On Saturday 14 January 2023, the Secretary-General met with His Excellency Mr. Sharif Al-Olama, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure. The two parties discussed enhancing the working relationship between the Ministry and the Secretariat and developing the cooperation to include a wider range of technical issues and joint projects. Both parties agreed to start the necessary steps to achieve this goal.
On the same day, Mr Lentz met with Dr. Eli Jidere Bala, Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, and discussed with him the steps for Nigeria's accession to the Energy Charter Treaty and the expected date for holding the National Energy Summit of Nigeria this year.
The Secretary-General also met with Mr. Mamadou Kane, the head of the Mauritanian delegation, who assured the Secretary-General of Mauritania's readiness to ratify the Energy Charter Treaty when the modernised Treaty is finalised this year.
On Sunday 15 January 2023, the Secretary-General met with the Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Dr. Saleh Al Kharabsheh, and briefed him on the modernisation process and the Chairmanship of 2023 and 2024. Minister Kharabsheh also put forward some ideas related to Jordan's priorities for the year 2024, the year of the Jordanian Chairmanship of the Energy Charter Conference, and some proposals for the year 2023.
The Secretary-General also met with Hon. Abdoulie Jobe, the Minister of Petroleum and Energy of The Gambia, who expressed his country's wish to accede to the ECT, as The Gambia completed Accession Reports in 2019. The Minister also thanked the Secretary-General for the extended Energy Investment Risk Assessment (EIRA) profile prepared for The Gambia by the Secretariat.
The Secretary-General also met with Mr. Issa Dione, the head of the Senegalese delegation, whose country has prepared the accession reports and is awaiting the completion of the process of Modernisation of the ECT to complete the accession process.
On the same day, the Secretary-General met with the Indonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mr. Arifin Tasrif, and discussed with him ways to enhance the relations between Indonesia and the Secretariat in 2023. Both parties agreed on some practical steps to be implemented this year.
The Secretary-General also met with the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of the State of Djibouti, Mr. Younis Ali Geidi, whose country will participate in the EIRA report within the framework of the project with the Islamic Development Bank.
