DOHA: The 5th edition of Doha Energy Forum concluded with the energy leaders reaching on a consensus that the outlook for the energy markets presented an opportunity for Gulf States to make economic returns.
The top-100 national and international executives tasked with steering Qatar’s energy industry toward a sustainable future gathered at the fifth Doha Energy Forum discussed the accelerating pace of change and competition in the industry after the recent 50 percent decline in oil prices. The forum featured global thought leaders from the International Energy Agency, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the International Gas Union and the World Energy Council amongst others, alongside the leadership of the Qatar energy industry.
“We can live with oil at $60 per barrel, even below it, and we can live well, but the condition is that we cut cost and reform the national budget,” H E Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah, former Minister of Energy & Industry told the audience of energy industry leaders at the Doha forum. “There are some positives of low oil prices as inflation will come down, and drilling costs and construction costs will come down,” he said.
The budget is based on a price of $65 a barrel for the current fiscal year, and will have a lower underlying price for the next fiscal year starting in April, according to Qatar’s Ministry of Economy and Commerce. Surplus revenue in recent years, when crude sold for about $100 a barrel on average, generated reserves that allow Qatar to maintain large projects, including infrastructure to host the soccer World Cup in 2022.
Qatar, a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, is seeking to diversify its economy away from oil and gas exports and is building factories to make petrochemicals, aluminum and steel.
Alistair Routledge (pictured), President & General Manger of ExxonMobil Qatar, led the international energy industry’s representation at the commemorative fifth edition of the Doha Energy Forum.
“These are certainly interesting times to be in our industry. I have been in the industry for nearly 25 years now, and anyone who has been around as long as I have has seen such times in the past, and we will certainly see such times again,” said Routledge. “Over the next few decades, population and income growth — and an unprecedented expansion of the global middle class — are expected to create new demands for energy. Meeting this demand will require more than resources and access to resources. It will depend on vision, innovation and sound policy, and we need to look no further than Qatar for an exemplary model of what will be needed to meet this demand,” he said.
Maersk Oil Qatar and ConocoPhillips participated as Premier Partners at the forum.
The Peninsula
