Supreme Petroleum Council (Kuwait)

Supreme Petroleum Council
Agency overview
Formed 26 August 1974
Jurisdiction Government of Kuwait

The Supreme Petroleum Council is one of the governmental agencies of Kuwait of which major task is to develop and set the energy policy of the country. In fact, the council is the highest policy body which oversees the overall petroleum and gas sector in Kuwait.[1][2]

History and profile

The council was established on 26 August 1974 to protect the state’s natural resources along with two other major public bodies, namely the Ministry of Oil and the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation.[3][4][5] In addition, the council set Kuwait's general policy of oil and energy.[6][7]

Saad Al Abdullah Al Sabah and Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, the current Emir of Kuwait, are among the former heads of the council.[5] The latter served in the post between 2003 and 2010.[5]

Then the council began to be headed by the Prime Minister of Kuwait.[6] The council members who are selected by the Amir of Kuwait serve for three years.[6][8] At the initial phase the council was consisted of four ministers, namely minister of finance and oil, minister of foreign affairs, state minister for Cabinet's affairs and minister of commerce and industry.[3] In 2010 the number of the council members was 18, eight cabinet members and ten representatives of private sector.[9] As of 2013 the council is made up of six ministers and six representatives of private sector.[6] The heads of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and of the Central Bank also hold a seat on the council.[5][10]

In theory, the council meets at least four times annually. However, it did not meet from 2008 to February 2010 due to the resignation of four council members.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "Petroleum". CBA. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  2. ↑ Fiona MacDonald (28 January 2011). "Kuwait Approves Spending $14.5 Billion to Build Nation’s Largest Refinery". Bloomberg. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Decree for Establishing the Supreme Petroleum Council". Ministry of Oil. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  4. ↑ Abdulaziz E. Al Attar (December 2004). "A review of upstream development policies in Kuwait". OPEC Review 28 (4). doi:10.1111/j.0277-0180.2004.00138.x. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Mahmoud Bushehri (25 August 2014). "Kuwait to mark 40th anniversary of Supreme Petroleum Council Tuesday". KUNA. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Kuwait. Analysis.". US Energy Information Administration. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  7. ↑ Kuwait Mineral and Mining Sector Investment and Business Guide. USA International Business Publications. 7 February 2007. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-4330-2851-9. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  8. ↑ The Changing Dynamics of Energy in the Middle East [Two Volumes]. Greenwood Publishing Group. 1 October 2006. p. 261. ISBN 978-0-313-08364-8. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "New Supreme Petroleum Council Meets -- Room for Progress?". Wikileaks. 1 September 2011. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  10. ↑ "Kuwait replaces oil officials at KPC after $2.2 billion Dow payment". Reuters. 19 May 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2014.