SHANA - The secretary general of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) said natural gas is the best option for realization of the world's environment protection goals.

Addressing the 3rd Iranian Petroleum and Energy Club Congress and Exhibition in Tehran on Tuesday, Mohammad Hossein Adeli said given gas's competitiveness and ease of access in comparison with other energy carriers, it is a better option for realizing environmental targets of the Paris Climate Accord.

He said the global demand for natural gas is growing and its consumption is projected to increase by 2.1% to 3.2% in 2018.

"Supply of natural gas is also increasing through pipelines and liquid natural gas (LNG)," he added.

He said by 2040, the share of gas and renewables in world energy mix will increase while that of oil and coal will decrease.

The Paris Agreement (French: Accord de Paris), Paris climate accord or Paris climate agreement, is an agreement within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) dealing with greenhouse gas emissions mitigation, adaptation and finance starting in the year 2020.

The language of the agreement was negotiated by representatives of 196 parties at the 21st Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC in Paris and adopted by consensus on 12 December 2015. As of October 2017, 195 UNFCCC members have signed the agreement, 168 of which have ratified it.