jimbabwe THE PRIVATE POCKET OF THE PRESIDENT (BERDYMUKHAMEDOV) :OIL, GAS AND THE LAW
Crude Accountability announces the publication of a new report, “The Private Pocket of the President (Berdymukhamedov): Oil, Gas and the Law, which examines the role of the State Agency for the Management and Use of Hydrocarbon Resources Under the President in the distribution of revenue from oil and gas sales in Turkmenistan.
The report focuses on the creation of the Agency, which carries full responsibility for management of petroleum operations in Turkmenistan, including receipt of monies, exploration, extraction, transport and warehousing of oil and gas by foreign investors. The Agency reports directly to the President of Turkmenistan and is responsible for oversight of all monitoring of petroleum operations, including environmental, financial and labor issues.
One of the main findings of the report is the fact that the Agency is required to place only twenty percent of the revenues it receives into the State Budget; the rest of the funds can be used at the Agency’s discretion and are not taxable. In this way, eighty percent of the revenue from petroleum operations coming into the country is not accountable to the public and is under total and single control of the President.
“This report provides new information to international organizations, including petroleum companies and international finance institutions, about the complete control over hydrocarbon resources by the State Agency, and, more importantly, by President Berdymukhamedov,” stated Kate Watters, Executive Director of Crude Accountability. “Any company, government or IFI that engages in the oil and gas sector will be contributing directly to the theft of resources from the Turkmen people by the President and the State Agency.”
The report describes the legal transformation of previous government structures that governed petroleum operations under the oversight of the Cabinet of Ministers, to the current situation in which the Agency has usurped not only management and use, but sole financial and legal oversight of the oil and gas sector.
The report is available on Crude Accountability’s website:https://crudeaccountability.org.