ISLAMABAD, Sept 29: The first meeting of senior officials of energy ministries of the Saarc member states started here on Thursday to discuss and formulate recommendations for the Saarc energy ministers meeting to be held on October 1.

The meeting unanimously elected Secretary Petroleum and Natural Resources Ahmad Waqar as the chairman of the committee of senior officials of energy ministries of the Saarc member states.

Later, Mr Waqar told journalists the meeting was being held at a critical juncture for promoting regional cooperation in energy sector.

The Saarc leaders had given a clear vision of promoting energy interaction as a fundamental pillar of regional cooperation framework with the ultimate objective of creating a Saarc Energy Ring, he said.

He said the working group on energy which had held two meetings in June and December 2004 had come up with a clear proposal of a meaningful action plan to realize the goal of cooperation in energy sector.

Director Saarc secretariat Amjad Sial highlighted the importance of promoting energy interaction among the regional countries.