Qatar has kept its reputation as a reliable global energy supplier by keeping its commitments with its international partners despite an “illegal” economic blockade imposed by four Arab nations, the country’s energy minister has said.
Speaking at the ‘Diplomatic Salon’ organised by the Diplomatic Institute of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, HE the Minister of Energy and Industry Dr Mohamed bin Saleh al-Sada emphasised that Qatar continued supplying oil and gas to its clients worldwide.
“During this blockade, Qatar has never missed a single shipment of oil and gas to any of our ‘consuming partners’ – that shows how committed Qatar is not only to our economy and reliability but also to ‘consuming countries’ because this is a very strategic commodity, and we know how important oil and gas are to our partners.
“We did not resort to force majeure because we paid a lot of efforts not to miss any shipment and to continue that reputation of utmost reliability,” al-Sada said during the forum, which carried the theme ‘QNV 2030 & the Future of Global Gas & Oil Markets’.
Al-Sada said Qatar’s success against the siege led by Saudi Arabia and its allies – the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt – was mainly the result of the Qatar National Vision 2030.
“Guided and launched by His Highness the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the Qatar National Vision 2030 has yielded a lot of positive results. Qatar is continuously implementing this vision, which has given Qatar a lot of advantages on different levels – social, economic, and environment, among others.
“The successful combating of the illegal siege and blockade by our neighbouring GCC countries was basically due to the proper preparation and implementation of this vision,” al-Sada pointed out.
On the future of global oil and gas markets, al-Sada said the Middle East holds the largest reserves of oil and gas deposits, and “it would remain as a main supplier of oil and gas to the world.”
“The GCC has 1/3 of the world’s oil reserves and 1/5 of gas reserves, and the region will continue to energise the global economy and plays a vital role in the world’s energy security,” he said.
Citing figures from the International Energy Agency, al-Sada said fossil fuels still comprise 75% of the total energy consumed globally.
“Fossil fuels need to be efficient, competitive, and continue to meet the demand for global energy. There are other types of energy sources like renewables but they are starting from a low base. It will take decades before they take a tangible part of the energy basket,” he said.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the event, al-Sada said, “There was a need to develop a plan for oil markets beyond March” and that “now was the appropriate time to look at it.”
“One of the possible options is to use this agreement and this structure and possibly move it forward,” said al-Sada, who added that Opec members and other countries participating in the pact to cut oil supplies had been successful in implementing their commitments.
“I think Opec will certainly look at all scenarios but certainly Opec and the participating countries have been very successful in implementing their commitment. They developed an excellent set-up and this set-up is a very good foundation to be fully utilised beyond March this year,” the energy minister said.
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