Qatar Daily News

Qatar’s oil minister said the market is “well-supplied” and that it was too early to speculate about the outcome of OPEC’s next meeting in March. Abdullah bin Hamad al Attiyah said: “The market is well-supplied … and it’s too early to talk about March now.”

The recent rise in oil prices would not hamper economic recovery, he added.

OPEC members achieved a 66 percent compliance last year with agreed crude output targets, a senior Iranian oil official was quoted as saying earlier on Sunday.

Exxon Mobil Corp and Qatar Petroleum have agreed to build a $6 billion plant in the Middle East country to produce chemicals for export to Asia.

The project will be completed by 2015, the companies said today at a press conference in Doha, Qatar.

Exxon will hold a 49 percent stake in the plant, which will have a 1.6 million ton a year steam cracker. Other units include two 650,000 ton a year polyethylene plants and a 700,000 ton ethylene glycol plant

The Qatar project will help Exxon increase chemical production capacity in the Middle East 50 percent in the next six years, said Stephen Pryor, president of Exxon Mobil Chemical Co.
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Qatar is planning to impose new restrictions in a bid to stop increases in the price of essential goods, it was reported on Wednesday.

Importers, wholesalers and retailers will soon require permission from the Ministry of Business and Trade, according to Sheikh Jassem bin Jaber Al Thani, director of the Consumer Protection Department at the Ministry of Business and Trade.

The proposed move reflects the government’s intention to closely monitor the market and keep prices under check.
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Qatar will remain one of the fastest growing economies in the world in 2010, as continued heavy investment in the hydrocarbon sector drives higher oil and gas output levels, a new report has predicted.

Research firm Business Monitor International said it sees see real gross domestic product growth averaging 7.5 percent from 2009-2013, with the most rapid expansion occurring in 2010 and 2011, when growth of 13.3 percent and 9.1 percent is predicted.
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Arab exports of natural gas have increased by more than 50% over the past four years with the majority of the increase coming from Qatar, according to official data.

The Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), in its 2009 statistical report, said the Arab region’s total gas exports rose by 54.4% to 161.9 billion cu m in 2008 from 104.8 billion cu m in 2004.

Arab gas reserves stood at 53.7 trillion cu m at yearend 2008, according to the OAPEC report, which said that Qatar has nearly half the Arab gas potential, with more than 25 trillion cu m.

The OAPEC report said Algeria remained the leading Arab gas exporter in 2008, with its exports of 59.4 billion cu m accounting for more than a third of the total Arab gas sales.
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As a continuation of the promotions launched to celebrate the two years mark of Blackberry service in Qatar, Qtel with the Blackberry Gemini offer a few weeks ago, brings to the market a new and innovative package for the Blackberry Bold 9000.

The new offer is designed to fuel BlackBerry enthusiasm nationwide and integrates with Qtel’s commitment to double the range of supported high-end Smartphone devices.

Customers who apply for Qtel’s Blackberry Internet Service and sign-up through the Shahry service will be able to purchase a Blackberry Bold 9000 for just QR 1,999, a major saving on the standard retail price of QAR 2,375.
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Australian outfit Neptune Marine is primed to start a $20 million combined services subsea inspection contract for Qatargas, the company’s first major project in the Middle East.

The three year deal, which is due to start early in the new year, covers the inspection of Qatargas platforms, offshore pipelines and subsea connection facilities which lie in the Arabian Gulf.

Under the terms of the contract, Neptune will provide a dynamically positioned (DP II) vessel bundled with a range of services including ROVs, hydrographic survey, diving and pipeline stabilisation.
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The Arab League’s 2009 economic report finds the UAE and Qatar the richest countries in the region.

Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are the wealthiest nations in the Arab World, the Arab Leagues annual economic report has found.

The figures, released this week, show Qatar to have the region’s highest per capita GDP at $70,651 for a population of 1.448 million, while the UAE’s per capita GDP stood at $52,574 for a population of 4.76 million. The two tiny Gulf states both beat out oil-giant Saudi Arabia by four places.

“They are oil exporting countries and their small population size gives them a relatively high per capita,” Abdulnasser Hatemi, a professor of finance at UAE University told The Media Line. “They are very active in tourism and other economic activities.”
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