Qatar Daily News

Qatar will play Saudi Arabia in a preparatory friendly in Doha on May 26, announced the Qatar Football Association on Friday.

The match is scheduled 10 days before the June 6 round of the 2010 FIFA World Cup when Qatar host Australia in a crucial qualifier. Saudi Arabia play Korea Republic away on June 10.

Saudi Arabia battled to two wins recently and have put themselves in with a chance for automatic qualification to the South Africa showcase. Qatar, meanwhile, suffered two consecutive defeats and will have to climb a mountain to progress to the Finals.
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Despite the global credit crunch, all major construction projects in Qatar are still in operation; More than 82 percent of all projects are late but the delays do not affect budgetary spending, according to a regional study released yesterday.

The study titled Insight Qatar and focusing on the construction sector in the country was conducted by Proleads Global, a leading UAE-based market research company.

The study found that the construction industry in Qatar as at the end of March consisted of 191 major projects with a total value of $82.5bn.

In Qatar, most sectors experienced growth in cash flow over the greater part of 2008 but the leisure and entertainment sector saw a decline during the last quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, say Proleads.
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According to Qatar daily The Peninsula the starting price for the IPO is QR10 per share with an additional AED25 levied as service charges.

The move will see the telecommunications company sell off 40 percent of its authorised share capital, with a total of 338.16 million ordinary shares on offer.

Subscribers can collect application forms and prospectus from 12 banks in the country – with the Qatar National Bank (QNB) and HSBC acting as joint lead managers, financial advisors as well as acting as the lead receiving banks.

Only Qatari residents, and 100 percent Qatari-owned companies are eligible to subscribe to the primary offer.
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The property sector in the Gulf will continue to face difficulties this year, with the UAE and Qatar likely to be hit particularly hard by the knock-on effects of the global financial crisis, according to the ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service.

“We believe that the developed GCC real estate markets will be affected the most as expansion plans in these markets have assumed a steady influx of expatriates and have already witnessed a decrease in property prices and a slowdown in construction activity,” wrote Martin Kohlhase, an analyst at Moody’s. “Moody’s expects that these trends are likely to have the largest impact on the Dubai real estate market, which is the most advanced such market in the Gulf region.”
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Result of the Qatar 250cc Grand Prix on
Sunday.

The race was shortened to 13 laps due to heavy rain.
1. Hector Barbera (Spain) Aprilia 26mins 50.940secs
2. Jules Cluzel (France) Aprilia 26:51.766
3. Mike Di Meglio (France) Aprilia 26:57.121
4. Hiroshi Aoyama (Japan) Honda 26:57.549
5. Raffaele De Rosa (Italy) Honda 26:57.596
6. Thomas Luthi (Switzerland) Aprilia 26:57.612
7. Alvaro Bautista (Spain) Aprilia 26:58.548
8. Ratthapark Wilairot (Thailand) Honda 26:59.289
9. Roberto Locatelli (Italy) Gilera 27:05.972
10. Gabor Talmacsi (Hungary) Aprilia 27:11.288
11. Hector Faubel (Spain) Honda 27:11.405
12. Shoya Tomizawa (Japan) Honda 27:19.342
13. Lukas Pesek (Czech Republic) Aprilia 27:19.846
14. Alex Debon (Spain) Aprilia 27:24.719
15. Alex Baldolini (Italy) Aprilia 27:27.928

Qatar would like to see costs on three energy projects cut by as much as 40 percent, the country’s oil minister said on Monday.

“We are looking to cut costs by 20 to 30 percent,” Oil Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah said at a press conference after the inauguration of a new gas plant. “But 40 percent would be better.”

Qatar has delayed projects to build the Shaheen refinery, the Mesaieed Aromatics plant and to develop the Barzan gas field as it looks to take advantage of a slump in the price of raw materials to drive down costs.

The Shaheen oil refinery was planned to have capacity of 250,000 barrels per day. Qatar has completed the preliminary engineering and design study for the project.
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The work on the $3 billion Qatar-Bahrain Causeway project is set to begin by the end of this year and is likely to be completed by 2013, said a report citing officials involved in the project.

The construction of the 43 km causeway was to have started this month, but has been delayed after Qatar authorities asked for a railway line to be added to the original two-lane road plans, the Arabian Business reported.

The causeway, described as the world’s longest linking two countries, is to stretch from Qatar’s Ras Ushairjj, just 5km from Zubarah to Bahrain’s Askar village.

About 150 engineers in the region and more overseas are working on the final study of the ambitious ‘Friendship Bridge.’
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Prince Charles has triggered a new row over his architectural views by urging Qatar’s leaders to rethink a modern design for a landmark London building, reports said Tuesday.

The heir to the British throne, who once famously lambasted plans for a London building as a “monstrous carbuncle,” has this time intervened over plans for the Chelsea Barracks.

Instead of a glass-and-steel design by renowned architect Richard Rogers, Charles is pressing for a classical plan made from bricks, stone and slate, mirroring the Sir Christopher Wren-designed Royal Hospital across the road.

In a letter written last month, Charles called on Qatari Diar, the development arm of the Qatar royal family, to include him in discussions on the Chelsea Barracks site of which it is part owner, said the Daily Telegraph.

Quinlan Terry, who drew up the prince’s alternative plans, said: “He told us how unhappy he was with the current proposals. He expressed a fervent desire that the scheme should reflect the stunning architecture of Wren’s hospital.
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Gas-rich Qatar plans to move forward, with modest delays, in massive investments in its gas sector despite the sour economic climate, officials said.

Faisal al-Suwaidi, chief executive of the state-owned Qatargas, said billions in investments were slated for major gas projects across the globe. Many, however, could see a two- or three-year lag in order to create higher demand, the Financial Times reports.

Suwaidi said if all projects moved forward in 2009, the supply-demand ratio in the energy sector would reach parity.

“But now, by 2014 you will see a big gap between supply and demand … because of the number of projects that have been either shelved, canceled or postponed,” he said.
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Doha has become a major destination for the cruise ships in the Gulf. The cruise agencies now regard Qatar as a regular port of call on the Middle East maritime routes because of new visa rules.

The new visa procedure allows Qatari authorities to process all visas in four to seven working days in advance before the ship’s arrival. On the day of arrival, while passports are gathered and collected, passengers can directly disembark and begin exploring Qatar immediately.

Qatar Tourism and Exhibitions Authority is keeping pace with all cruises coming to Qatar, ensuring that all procedures go smoothly and welcoming passengers at the port with a display of traditional Qatari hospitality. 280 passengers from the American ship Silver Wind were warmly welcomed at the Doha port, yesterday.
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