Japan, India, China, US, and South Korea - five of the largest energy consumers in the world - have decided to come together to encourage efficient use of energy supplies and protect the environment.
During one-day discussion with representatives from Japan, India, China, US, and South Korea on December 16, 2006, Wen - Prime Minister of China - said that energy supplies' efficient use and environmental protection are the topmost priorities for the Government of China.
Energy ministers of India, China, Japan, US, and Republic of Korea (these countries together make up about 50% of global oil consumption) met in Beijing on December 16, 2006. The ministers discussed about various ways of promoting energy security, sustainability, and stability. A 6-point proposal was made by Wen. The proposal is intended to boost energy co-operation amongst the 5 countries. This proposal invites cooperation in the fields of oil conservation, key technologies' research, various oil alternatives' development, and increasing supply of energy.
All 5 nations consume about 45.5% of 3.77 Billion Tons of oil in world. However, hikes in oil price constrain their fiscal development. Reasons, identified by them, behind the volatility of oil prices are both complex & manifold:
Increasing demand of oil
Concerns over investments' adequacy in production capacity of oil in long-term.
Current low-levels of additional production capacity.
Bottlenecks in refining capacity.
Lingering political instability in a number of oil producing regions & market speculation.
They also make out that current high prices of oil are impacting energy demand & investment. Energy ministers of 5 major energy-consuming countries are targeting to counterfeit unity amongst them, so that stable prices of oil can be ensured. This is critical for their continued growth and energy security.
In the end of the meeting, all five ministers agreed to augment co-operation to diversify energy mix for making wider use of the cleaner energy. They pledged to strengthen co-operation on strategic reserves of oil and urge collaboration of business sectors of 5 countries.
An Analyst at RNCOS said, "Major Priorities and Challenges for International Cooperation wherein India is likely to call for increased international co-operation for ensuring stable prices of oil".
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