Despite the further spread of the pandemic, the International Business Congress continued its work in 2021. For the first time in the history of the Congress, the 24th Annual General Meeting was held in a hybrid format. The IBC members and guests had the opportunity to participate in the events of the forum in person in studios in St. Petersburg and Singapore, as well as online in real time.

More than 500 IBC members and invited guests participated in the in-person and on-line formats at the meetings of the IBC Working Committees, the Plenary Session and the International Conference on "Challenges and Opportunities of Growing Energy Markets in Asia" held from September 14 to September 17.

In his welcoming address to the participants of the 24th IBC Annual General Meeting, Dr. A. Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom and the IBC President, noted that despite the ongoing pandemic, the Congress had once again attracted a large and professional audience from 25 countries.

The vivid discussions during the Working Committees’ meetings focused on current trends in the global economy in the pandemic era, digitalization issues, and climate goals of the IBC member-companies.

The General Meeting elected Dr. B. Frei, Member of the Executive Committee and Executive Vice President, Industrial Automation, Schneider Electric Industries SAS as successor of Mr. L. Mukhamedov, Schneider Electric Industries SAS. Ms. Frei became a new Chaorlady of the “Information and Communication” Working Committee.

After the Plenary Session the AGM participants took part in the International Conference on "Challenges and Opportunities of Energy Markets in Asia". The conference was moderated by Dr. A. Medvedev, Advisor to the General Director of Gazprom Export LLC in the studio in St. Petersburg and Mr. S. V. Eddrenkine, General Manager, Gazprom Marketing and Trading Singapore Pte. Ltd. In the studio in Singapore.

The presentations at the conference were made by Dr. A. Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee, Gazprom; Prof. K-D. Maubach, Chief Executive Officer, Uniper SE; Mr. G. Kunihiro, President, Diamond Gas International Pte. Ltd.; Dr. B. Frei, Member of the Executive Committee, Executive Vice President, Industrial Automation, Schneider Electric Industries SAS; Mr. Lee Pak Sing, Assistant Chief Executive Officer, Enterprise Singapore and Mr. Dato Mohammad Medan bin Abdullah, Group Chief Executive Officer, Bintulu Port Holdings Berhad.

The year 2021 was wrapped up by the joint meeting of the IBC Working Committees: “Information and Communications” and “Industry, Innovation and Prospective Development” and the meeting of the "Ecology and Healthcare” Working Committee held in a hybrid format in December in Dubai, UAE.

Twenty-two years after the founding conference in 1997, the city of Bonn welcomed the IBC again in spring 2019. The representatives of the 88 member-companies of the Congress attended the 22nd Annual General Meeting. At the opening ceremony, Mr. Sigmar Gabriel, guest of honor and a former German Foreign Minister and former Vice Chancellor, welcomed guests and participants of the forum. The largest event of the Congress have been sponsored by Linde Group, Uniper CE and Wintreshal Dea GmbH.

Mr. Ch. Bruch, Member of the Board of Linde Group; Mr. M. Mehren, Chairman of the Board of Wintershall Dea GmbH; Mr. K. Martin, Member of the Board of Uniper SE; Mr. H. Fennema, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of N.V Nederlandse Gasunie.; Mr. Jiao Fangzheng, CNPC Vice President; and Mr. T. Kehler, managing director of Zukunft Erdgas have been invited as speakers at the international conference “Natural Gas – Paving the Way to Ecological Economy”.

In 2019, there was an active change in the governing positions in the Congress. Due to the resignation of Dr. Klaus Schaefer, Uniper CE, from the position of Vice President of the IBC, the General Meeting elected Dr. Rainer Seele, OMV Aktiengesellschaft as his successor. The decision of the IBC Presidium to create a new position of the Chairman of the IBC Board and to elect Dr. Alexander Medvedev, Gazprom Export LLC, to hold this position was also approved. Mr. Udo Voelker announced his resignation from the position of the Coordinator of the Board of the IBC. Mr. Andreas Boeldt, Head of the OMV AG Representative Office in Russia, was elected as his successor. Dr. Andrey Kruglov handed over the post of the Chairman of the "Law, Banking and Finance" Working Committee to Dr. Famil Sadygov, Gazprom. Mr. Leonid Mukhamedov, Schneider Electric Industries SAS became the new Chairman of the “Information and Communication” Working Committee. It was also announced that the name of the IBC Working Committee "Human Resources, Education and Science" was changed to "Human Resources".

The highlight of the IBC in 2017 was the 20th Annual General Meeting, which was held at the invitation of OMV Aktiengesellschaft on May 25-26, 2017, in Vienna, Austria. The gala event brought together more than 350 participants from 90 representative companies from 26 countries. Dr. Hans Jörg Schelling, Austrian Federal Minister of Finance, addressed the Congress delegates with a welcoming speech.

In his welcoming speech, Alexander B. Miller, President of the IBC and Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom, noted that the IBC is in fact becoming an international organization. Along with European companies and organizations, companies and banks from the Asia-Pacific region began to join the Congress: Petrovietnam, Mitsui & Co. Moscow, SREI Infrastructure Finance Limited, Mizuho Bank, Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Mitsubishi and CNPC. The new scale of activity requires considering the specifics of individual regions, which will be represented in the association in the foreseeable future, as well as new approaches to business development focused on human values.

International conference "Natural gas as the fuel of the future" was held under the guidance of Mr. Manfred Leitner, Member of the Board of OMV Aktiengesellschaft. The conference was traditionally opened by the President of IBC, Dr. A. Miller. He noted that the use of natural gas meets the main criteria of modern development and is the most environmentally friendly form of energy. Mr. M. Leitner spoke in his report about the importance of Russian gas supplies for the European market. Mr. K. Schäfer, Chairman of the Management Board of Uniper SE, devoted his speech to the topic "Natural Gas in a Low-Carbon World". Dr. O. Lazar, President of Shell Russia, spoke about the prospects of natural gas and Russia. Mr. M. Mehren, Chairman of the Management Board of Wintershall Holding GmbH, stressed in his speech that the use of natural gas facilitated the transition to new energy sources. In conclusion Mr. K. Blum, Executive Vice-President of "Schneider Electric Industries" SAS made a presentation "Smart Gas and Smart Future", where he described the transition of the gas industry to a new level of "smart" technologies.

The gala dinner was held in the Parade Hall of Vienna City Hall, one of the most beautiful places in Vienna.

In 2017, the IBC Presidium approved a new work project "Methane and its Impact on Climate Change" presented by the Industry, Innovation and Prospective Development Working Committee. The project included a scientific study analyzing the role of methane in climate change, which resulted in the publication of a book.

In 2017, there was a change in the leadership of the Ecology and Healthcare Working Committee. Dr. Nebojsa Jankovic, Head of the Comita Group of Companies for Russia and the CIS, was selected as the new Chair following the retirement of Ms. Stella Blagova, Head of Environment and Sustainability at Overgas Inc.

Margarita Hoffmann, Senior Vice President of Wintershall Dea AG, was elected as a new member of the IBC Board in 2017. Ms. Hoffmann is still a member of the IBC Board of Executive Directors.

The historic 18th Annual General Meeting of the EBC was held in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, on May 28-29, 2015, at the invitation of Srbijagas.
In 2015, the authorized representatives of the member-companies of the European Business Congress decided to expand the scope of the organization. During the Plenary session the EBC members amended the Articles of the Association and agreed on its new name.
The European Business Congress was renamed into the International Business Congress (IBC), a new logo of the association was also approved.
The goals of the IBC were defined as: assistance in the development of the interstate and international economic cooperation, including in the OSCE member countries; international promotion of economic development, including in the OSCE member countries.
Membership in the IBC is open to all enterprises regardless of their location and industry, as well as unions and organizations representing the interests of enterprises.
In his speech, the President of the IBC Dr. A. Miller noted that the expansion of the scope of the Congress will promote the development of relations between the European and Asia-Pacific business communities.
Mr. Aleksandar Antic, Minister of Energy and Mining of Serbia, addressed the delegates of the 18th EBC Annual General Meeting with a welcoming speech.
At the International Conference the attendees discussed “Europe’s Energy Sector: Future Structure and Place in the Global Market”. The conference was moderated by Mr. Marcel Kramer, Senior Advisor to the Management Committee of Gazprom.

Speaches at the conference have been delivered by Dr. A. Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom, Mr. Jaroslav Lissovolik, Member of the Management Board of Deutsche Bank AG, Mr. Dusan Bajatovic, President of Srbijagas. The speakers assessed the current situation in the global energy market, presented the main energy development trends in South-Eastern Europe, and analyzed the macroeconomic factors affecting the energy security of Europe.

In 2015, the IBC launched “Save the City” computer game, initiated by the “Ecology and Healthcare” Working Committee to present benefits of natural gas. After the presentation of the game, various universities and schools have expressed the wish to present it to their students and pupils.

The 16th Annual General Meeting of the EBC (now IBC) was held on 30-31 May 2013 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands at the invitation of the Nederlandse Gasunie and Royal Boskalis Westminster. The event was co-sponsored by Shell, ING Bank and South Stream Transport.

The event brought together over 370 delegates and guests from 25 OSCE member-states and was dedicated to “Development of LNG and its Impact on the European Gas Markets”. Mr. Jos de Groot, Director of Energy Markets, Ministry of Economy of the Netherlands, took part in the opening ceremony.

The conference was moderated by Mr. Lincoln Payton, Executive Committee member, BNP Paribas, and Mrs. Tatiana Mitrova, head of Oil and Gas Department at the Energy Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Dr. A. B. Miller, Gazprom, Mr. P. van Gelder, Nederlandse Gasunie, Mr. K. Schaefer, E.ON Global Commodities SE, Mr. P. Berdowski, Royal Boskalis Westminster, Dr. O. Lazare, Shell Russia were among the panel speakers.

In 2013 the EBC launched three projects. As part of the project “Secrets of Natural Gas for Schoolchildren” the Congress had issued a book about the properties of the natural gas in English and German. Another project – “Environmental Consequences of Shale Gas Production in Europe” was executed in the form of a comprehensive scientific analysis of shale gas production technologies in the U.S. and Canada to assess possible impact of large-scale development of shale gas fields on environment and population in Europe. Both projects were implemented by the “Industry and Construction” Working Committee (now “Industry, Innovation and Prospective Development”) and fully paid in 2014.

The “Ecology and Healthcare” Committee launched the “Bicycle – Ecology and Health” project to booster the environmental thinking and promote bicycles as universal eco-friendly means of transportation. In total 100 bicycles and numerous bike stands have been produced and installed in Bulgaria, Serbia, the Czech Republic and Russia. Furthermore, the project executives organized a bike-marathon and held a conference to promote the benefits of cycling for environment and human health . The project was implemented in March 2015.

The major event of the European Business Congress in 2011 was the 14th Annual General Meeting held on 2-3 June in one of the most beautiful capitals of Europe – Prague (Czech Republic). It was hosted by the Czech company Vemex and supported by the Royal Bank of Scotland and Moravské naftové doly, a major Czech energy company. More than 300 delegates from 23 OSCE member-states attended the forum. The First Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, Mr. Tomáš Huener, gave a welcoming speech at the Plenary Session of the 14th Annual General Meeting.
На Общем собрании делегаты поздравили Председателя Правления ОАО «Газпром» д-ра А. Б. Миллера с 10-летием его руководства Конгрессом.

After 11 years of service, the EBC Vice President, Dr. von Heidebreck, announced his resignation. Mr. Juergen Fitzchen, member of the Board of Deutsche Bank AG, was elected as his successor.

The International Conference on “Ecological Challenges and the Energy Sector” was moderated by Mr. Marcel Kramer, CEO of South Stream, and Mr. Lincoln Payton, Member of Executive Committee, BNP Paribas. Presentations were made by Dr. Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom, Mr. Klaus Schaefer, Chairman of the Executive Board of E.ON Ruhrgas AG, Mr. Michael Borell, Senior Vice President, Continental Europe and Central Asia, Total S.A., Dr. Rajapillai Achillan, Managing Director for Advanced Engineering Consulting, GL Noble Denton, Mr. Ali Majid, Vice President Commercial, Statoil ASA Russia, Mr. Charles Watson, Executive Vice President for Russia and Caspian of Shell Group and Ms. Stella Blagova, Head of Ecology and Sustainable Development Department, Overgas Inc. The conference participants assessed current environmental situation in the energy sector and identified effective approaches to ensure the ecological balance in the energy industry.

Later that day the AGM participants attended the opening ceremony of the international gas-powered car rally following the route from Prague to Leipzig, Wolfsburg, Berlin and finishing in Greifswald. The purpose of the rally was to demonstrate the potential of the compressed natural gas as the cleanest and most efficient fuel for transport.

Later this day the AGM participants attended the opening ceremony of the international gas-powered car rally following the route from Prague to Leipzig, Wolfsburg, Berlin and finishing in Greifswald. The purpose of the rally was to demonstrate the potential of the compressed natural gas as the cleanest and most efficient fuel for transport.

In 2011 the EBC launched the new working project “Leo Tolstoy European School in Berlin”. The project has been successfully developing for over than 11 years now, contributing to the quality improvement and the raise of attractiveness of the bilingual school education.

“Energy sector and turmoil on financial markets: implications for investments and supply/demand balance” was the focal topic of the 12th Annual General Meeting of the EBC (now IBC). Over 250 delegates attended the forum held on 10-11 June 2009 at the invitation of the EBC senior sponsoring member, Eni in Porto Cervo, Sardinia.

Keynote speakers participated in the conference: Dr. Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and EBC President, Mr. Andrew Gould, CEO and Chairman of the Board, Schlumberger, Mr Marcel Kramer, CEO of Nederlandse Gasunie, Dr. Andrey Kruglov, Deputy Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, Mr. Uwe Fip, Senior Vice President of E. ON Ruhrgas AG, Mr. Marco Alvera, Senior Vice President, Eni, Mr. Stewart Snow, President, ConocoPhillips Russia Inc., Mr. Mohammed Zaki, Vice President Russia, Total, Dr. Leonid Grigoriev, Director of Institute of Energy and Finance, Moscow. The session was moderated by Mr. Sead Vilogorac, Senior Economic Affairs Officer of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. Conference participants discussed the impact of the financial crisis on the oil and gas sector, trends in technological development, sources of funding and development prospects of natural gas and oil markets.
д-р Леонид Григорьев, Президент Института Энергетики и финансов г. Москва. Модерировал заседание г-н Сеад Вилогорак, Старший представитель по экономическим вопросам Европейской экономической комиссии ООН. Участники конференции обсудили влияние финансового кризиса на нефтегазовый сектор, тенденции технологического развития, источники финансирования и перспективы развития рынка природного газа и нефти.

In 2009, the Congress launched a new pilot project initiated by the “Industry and Construction” and “Ecology and Healthcare” Working Committees. The aim of the project was to study and evaluate energy saving and renewable energy measures in Yambol town to further reduce costs in the production, distribution and consumption of energy in the city. The project was fully implemented in 2010.

In 2007, the EBC celebrated its 10th anniversary.

The anniversary celebration took place in June in Berlin, Germany. More than 300 delegates attended the international conference on “Global Challenges: Climate Change and Energy Supply”. The EBC President A.B. Miller chaired the 10th Anniversary General Meeting and was greeted by Dr. Joachim Wuermeling, Deputy Minister for Economics and Technology of the Federal Republic of Germany and Dr. Harald Wolf, Mayor of Berlin.

It was noted that during the past decade, passed since the founding of the Congress, serious changes took place in numerous countries, establishing a new format of the international market relations. Over the years the European Business Congress had been constantly looking for additional opportunities to further develop good relations between the Eastern and Western business communities, it contributed positively to the process of creating common cooperation standards as much as it could.

Ten EBC member-companies have jointly supported the organization of the 10th Annual General Meeting: Wintershall Holding AG, Daimler Chrysler AG, Deutsche Bank AG, Dresdner Bank AG, E. OH Ruhrgas AG, Max Streicher GmbH & Co KG AA, MAN Ferrostahl AG, Roche Diagnostics GmbH, Siemens AG, White & Case LLP.

The evening reception for participants and guests of the 10th AGM was held in the Charlottenburg Palace, one of the Germany’s most beautiful palaces.

In 2007 a new EBC Working Committee “Personnel, Education and Science” was established at the initiative of Wintershall Holding AG, Gazprom and Nederlandse Gasunie N.V.. Mr. J. Moepert, Wintershall Holding AG was appointed as it first Chairperson. The work of the Committee was co-chaired by Mrs. E. Kasyan (Gazprom) and Mr. E. Dam (Nederlandse Gasunie N.V.).

In 2007 due to a resignation of Mr. S. Ushakov, Dr. S. Khomyakov, Deputy Chairman of the Management Committee, General Director of Corporate Protection Service of Gazprom was elected as Chairman of the “Business Security” Working Committee and a new member of the EBC Presidium. Dr. S. Khomyakov has been successfully leading the Committee to date.

In October that year the EBC Board adopted a proposal by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe to implement the joint project “Balanced Energy Policy to Reduce Energy Security Risks”. The goal of the project was to maintain a multilateral dialogue on risk assessment, the impact of a balanced energy policy on energy security, and the contribution to international energy cooperation. The project was fully implemented by 2010.

In 2005, 84 companies from 20 European countries were members of the European Business Congress. Leading European political leaders often participated in the EBC events. Thus, during the 8th EBC Annual General Meeting in Vilnius, Republic of Lithuania, the President Mr. Valdas Adamkus received the delegation of the EBC member-companies in the Presidential Palace, and the Prime Minister of Lithuania, Mr. Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas made a welcoming speech at the EBC Annual General Meeting. Lithuania’s accession to the European Union in 2004 determined the focal topic of the conference held in the framework of the Annual General Meeting- “The Baltic Sea Region – a Growth Hub for Europe”. The speakers discussed economic and energy issues and challenges of Lithuania and its neighboring states. Dr. O. Hahn, former Ambassador of the European Union (1996-1999) moderated the conference. Reports at the conference were made by the heads of leading European companies in the gas industry and banking sector: AO Ahema, Gazprom, UN Economic Commission for Europe, JSC Latvijas Gaze, AO Lietuvos Dujos, Skandinaviska Еnskilde Banken – Vilnius Bankas.

In 2005 Mr. Udo Voelker, Executive Vice President, MAN Ferrostal AG was elected as Coordinator of the EBC Board. Holding this position for 14 years, Mr. Voelker has contributed significantly to the development of the Congress and its global recognition in the business and political circles.

The sixth General Meeting of the EBC (now IBC) in 2003 was held at the invitation of Gazprom in Moscow. In his welcome speech to the AGM participants Dr. A. Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom noted the growing influence of the EBC in the international arena developing practical cooperation mechanisms between private business communities of East and West. The steady growth of the Congress’s membership base – in 2003 the Congress had 72 member-companies from 19 countries, testified to further development of the organization as strong international institution.

The following International Conference on “Energy policy in a transforming Europe” attracted more than 200 delegates from all over the world. Mr. Gennady Ustyuzhanin, Deputy Energy Minister of the Russian Federation; Mr. Reinier Zwitserloot, Chairman of the Management Board of Wintershall AG; Dr. Stuart McGill, President of Exxon Mobil Gas and Power Marketing Company; Mr. Stanislav Tsygankov, Head of Gazprom International Relations Department; Dr. Hans-Joachim Frank, Director of Scientific Research Department, Deutsche Bank AG; academician Mr. Anatoly Dmitrievsky, Director of the Institute of Oil and Gas Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences and Mr. George Kowalski, Director of the Industry, Energy and Enterprise Development (UNECE). The conference was moderated by Mr. Jean-Marie Dauger, Senior Executive Vice President of Gaz de France.

A brief overview of the energy market state and its dynamics in a transforming Europe and effective communication strategies between business and government institutions regarding trends on energy market have been addressed at the conference.

Upon resignation of Dr. Sergey Semenov at the end of 2002, Ms. Nadezhda Doniy was elected to the post of Executive Secretary of the European Business Congress e.V. A former Gazprom employee Ms. Doniy stood at the origins of the creation of the organization. She made an important contribution to the EBC establishment, managed, and organized main events of the Congress. Ms. Doniy remained EBC (IBC) Executive Secretary until the end of 2017.

In June 2001 in Antalya, Turkey, more than 200 delegates and guests of the EBC (now IBC) gathered at the 4th Annual General Meeting of the Congress held on the focal topic “Water Resources”. The meeting participants addressed economic and social aspects of water resources and came up with effective approaches to solve water supply issues as well as drinking water conservation in Europe and in the world. The 9th President of the Republic of Turkey, Mr. S. Demirel attended the meeting as the honorary guest. Organizational and financial assistance for the event was provided by GAMA Industry A.S.

To optimize the activities of the Congress EBC Secretariat relocated its headquarters from Bonn to the capital of Germany – Berlin in May 2001.

1999 marked the completion of the most important stage in the Congress’s history – the acquisition of a legal entity status. The Congress is an international nongovernmental non-profit organization. IBC member companies have a real opportunity to lear about business conditions in different countries, establish direct business contacts, cooperate on joint projects, conclude mutually beneficial agreements and contracts in specific business areas.

The most important distinctive features of the Congress are its independence, autonomy and unaccountability in organizational strategy and tactics development.
In 1999 the second Annual General Meeting of the Congress was held in Athens (Greece) at the invitation of Prometheus Gas. The meeting participants discussed mechanisms of business contacts expansion and infrastructure development of international economic relations. Mr. H.-D. Genscher, former German Minister of Foreign Affairs and Vice Chancellor took part at the conference as a guest of honor.

This year the sixth Working Committee "Industry and Construction" (renamed "Industry, Innovation and Prospective Development" in 2016) was established. Dr. N. Tolmachev, Tubokomplekt Ltd. was elected as chairman of the committee from 1999 to 2002. From 2003 to 2006, the committee was chaired by B. Budzulyak, RAO Gazprom. Since 2009, the committee has been chaired by O. Aksyutin, Deputy Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom. The committee focuses on developing mechanisms for international cooperation in industry and science.

International Business Congress (former European Business Congress) was created on the idea of the participants of the OSCE Economic Forum in December 1997 to promote the development of economic cooperation between East and West, establishing a dialogue between political and business circles of different countries. More than 500 representatives of the leading companies from 37 countries participated in the founding conference. The Russian fuel and energy complex was represented by Gazprom, UES of Russia, LUKOIL. The conference was also attended by major Western companies like Daimler Chrysler, Eni, Ruhrgas, Siemens, ABB, Deutsche Bank, Norsk Hydro, Phillips, Dresdner Bank, Credit Lyonnais, Bayernwerk, Gaz de France, Mannesmann, Neste Oil, Ferrostaal, Gasunie and others. One of the main organizers of the Congress was Gazprom, whose head Mr. Rem Vyakhirev was elected as President of the Congress for five years term (1997-2002). Mr. Georg Krupp, a member of the Board of Deutsche Bank, was elected by EBC members as Vice President of the Congress. The city of Bonn was chosen to host the headquarters of the newly-established organization.

Five Working Committees have been established during the first year after the Congress was instituted: “Energy”, “Law, Banking and Finance”, “Information and Communication”, “Ecology and Healthcare”, and “Business Security”.