US Secretary of State Tillerson to receive top award at key energy summit in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will be honored with the highest recognition of the World Petroleum Council (WPC), the Dewhurst Award, for his “outstanding contribution to the oil and gas industry,” the WPC announced in a statement late on June 21. 

Tillerson will receive the “distinguished lifetime achievement award” on July 9 at the opening ceremony of the 22nd World Petroleum Congress at the Istanbul Convention Center (ICC), the statement said. 

Tillerson, the ex-chairman and former chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil Corp., is the 10th recipient of the Dewhurst Award in the history of the WPC, it added. 

The largest meeting of the oil and gas industry will start on July 9 with a high-level official opening ceremony at the ICC, where ministers and top Turkish officials will welcome over 5,000 participants to the congress.

High-level executives from leading energy companies such as Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Total, Saudi Aramco and SOCAR as well as up to 50 energy ministers will be attending the congress with the theme “Bridges to our Energy Future.”        

The congress will end on July 13.