At the 24th Meeting of the Conference (Nicosia, 2013), the Working Group on the Rules of Procedure for the Appointment of the Secretary-General was dissolved with the recommendation that the issue should be considered in relation to the Review to be conducted in 2014. Based on the Review and the comments raised during the Meeting of the Conference in Nicosia, it was proposed the Conference should discuss in November 2014, during the Statutory Session in Astana, the re-establishment of such Working Group.
Several delegations replied that for cost-efficiency reasons it would be sensible to establish a single working group to deal with a broader mandate: (i) voting rights (including a definition of ‘persistent arrears’ of Article 36(8) of the ECT), (ii) additional issues regarding the procedure for the appointment of the Secretary General, and (iii) any other required changes to the procedural rules.
The Conference approved in November 2014, during its Statutory Session: (i) the establishment of a Working Group on Procedural Issues (instead of the re-establishment of the Working Group on the Rules of Procedure for the Appointment of the Secretary-General), (ii) the terms of reference for such Working Group, and (iii) the membership and Chairmanship of the Working Group based on voluntary nominations.
The Energy Charter Conference approved in November 2015 the amendments to the Procedural Rules of the Conference, including the rules for the appointment of a Secretary General.