Tehran, Nov 22, IRNA – Iraqi President Fuad Masum arrived in Tehran on Sunday to participate in the upcoming summit meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) to be held here on November 23.

Iraqi President was welcomed at Mehrabad International Airport by Iranian Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance Ali Tayebnia Sunday morning.

Masum is also expected to meet with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani during his trip to Tehran.

In addition to heads of states and governments from 17 permanent and observer countries and guests, general secretaries of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and International Energy Forum (IEF) have confirmed their participation in the third summit meeting.

Previous GECF gas summits were held in Qatar in 2011 and in Moscow in 2013.

Ministerial and expert-level delegates have started arriving in Tehran to make preparations for the Gas Summit.

On Sunday (Nov. 22), simultaneous to arrival of the heads of state/government and ministers, delegates will work on documentation of the summit meeting.

And on Monday (Nov. 23), the 3rd GECF Gas Summit will be held to discuss market outlook and strategy while dignitaries take the opportunity to hold bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the working sessions.

The GECF is the gathering of the world’s leading gas producers that provides a framework for exchange of experience, views, information and data, as well as coordination in gas related developments among member countries.

It consists of 17 main and observer members with its permanent secretariat positioned in Doha, Qatar.

Russia, Iran, Qatar, Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Libya, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, and the United Arab Emirates, are main members of the gas exporting body. Observer countries are the Netherlands, Iraq, Oman, Peru and Norway.

GECF members account for 42 percent of global gas output, 70 percent of global gas reserves, 40 percent of pipe gas transmission, and 65 percent of global trade of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).

By IRNA