Qatar Daily News

Qatar Petroleum and Exxon Mobil Corporation today announced the Al Khaleej Gas-Phase 2 (AKG-2) project, with 1,250 million cubic feet per day (mcfd) of sales gas capacity, initiated operations in December 2009.

“This is another major achievement to ensure the optimal use of Qatar’s hydrocarbon resources to meet increasing local demand and contribute to further development of Qatar’s industrial base. This project is helping to support the country’s rapid economic expansion.”

The new facilities are designed to meet the growing demand of local industries. Combined with Al Khaleej Gas-Phase 1 (AKG-1), which began production in 2005, AKG will have a total capacity of 2,000 mcfd, making it the largest source of domestic gas supply in the State of Qatar.
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Qatar Airways are trying to develop a biofuel that will enable them to keep on flying and become carbon neutral.

The project will be a joint affair between Qatar Airways, Qatar Science & Technology Park, and Qatar Petroleum. The trio has established the Qatar Advanced Biofuel Platform which will focus on devoloping economically viable and sustainable biofuel production along with the aspects of market and strategic analysis.
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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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Transfield Services Ltd. (TSE.AU) said Thursday that its joint venture with WorleyParsons Ltd. (WOR.AU) has a US$100 million contract for maintenance and other work with RasGas in Qatar.

The work is a two-year extension of the joint venture’s existing contract, which has been expanded to include shutdowns, bringing its total value of work with RasGas to US$117 million, the Sydney-based company said in a statement.

RasGas is a joint venture between Qatar Petroleum, which holds a 70% stake, and ExxonMobil, which has a 30% interest, to operate liquified natural gas facilities in the Middle Eastern state.

Gulf Arab oil and gas producer Qatar has delayed some energy sector projects including the Shaheen refinery because of falling prices, its energy minister was reported saying on Thursday.

“Qatar has delayed a number of major projects, such as the Shaheen refinery by one year…,” al-Hayat newspaper cited Abdullah al-Attiyah as saying in Paris.

Attiyah was quoted as telling the Arabic-language daily: “We expect changes in the costs of these projects… We are expecting prices that are lower by 30 percent or more.”

A company official said last week that the Shaheen refinery project was under review as state oil firm Qatar Petroleum assesses construction costs.
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Qatar, one of OPEC’s smallest
producers, has notified at least two Asian term buyers it will
cut May supplies of its Marine crude, while it will continue to
supply contacted volumes of its Land crude, traders said on
Wednesday.

State-owned Qatar Petroleum (QP) told the buyers it would cut
supplies of medium-heavy Qatar Marine crude by 4 percent from
contracted volumes in May, compared with no cuts for April, the
traders said.

QP will also keep supplies of Qatar Land crude at full
contractual volumes in May, steady from levels over the two
previous months.

Traders said the supply curbs by Qatar, which has been
cutting crude supplies to Asia since January in line with OPEC’s
deal to cut output to prop up prices, was not a surprise.

“More or less it was what we were expecting,” one trader
said.

Qatar’s notice came after OPEC member United Arab Emirates
last week told buyers it will increase supplies of its
medium-heavy Upper Zakum crude in May, but keep curbs on three
other grades unchanged from April. [ID:nT103266]

Qatar also notified the two Asian buyers that it would leave
its 5 percent operational tolerance for May volumes, unchanged
from April.

Following are the cuts in Qatar term crude supplies to Asian
since January 2009, according to the sources.

January February March April May
Qatar Marine 5% 6% 15% no cuts 4%
Qatar Land 5% 3% no cuts no cuts no cuts

(Reuters)

Qatar’s al Shaheen refinery project is under review as state oil firm Qatar Petroleum looks into construction costs, a company official said on Tuesday.

Energy companies worldwide have revised plans for new projects due to the lower oil price and falling demand, but also in view of cheaper costs for raw materials.

Middle East oil producers Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have used the fall in commodity prices to drive down costs for new projects.

Qatar was looking for similar cost savings at al Shaheen, said Jassim Darwish, senior project development engineer at QP refining and manufacturing ventures.

“The project is under assessment due to changes in market conditions … cost is the main thing, the main task is to optimise costs,” he told reporters on the sidelines of an energy conference.
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Exxon Mobil is still in talks with state-run Qatar Petroleum (QP) to build a petrochemical cracker, a senior Exxon executive said on Tuesday.

The slump in demand for petrochemicals as global economic activity slows has raised doubts about plans for petrochemical expansion. The Middle East has a slew of projects under contruction and planning as the world’s top oil exporters look to develop their economies.

Exxon and QP have been talking about the plant for four years after signing an initial deal in 2005. A final deal was expected in 2006, but has yet to be struck.
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Qatar Petroleum and delegates from Japan held yesterday the first Qatar-Japan Joint Seminar where issues on techniques and economics of energy were discussed.

The event, which was presented at the Sharq Village and Spa, was organised in conjunction with the Japan and Qatar Economic Committee meeting.

“This event was organised so both Japan and Qatar can discuss energy together as well as other energy-related issues in both countries. In the seminar, Japan provided Qataris with information and ideas about the energy market and technology in Japan, like the Gas-fired Cooling System, new gas carriers and refining technology,” said Naji Abi-Aad, Qatar Petroleum media and research strategist.

“The seminar also aims to enhance the link between Japan and Qatar in the energy sector,” said Abi-Aad.
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Construction work to build a US $5.6 billion (AED20.5 billion) aluminium project at Mesaieed in Qatar is more than 65% complete, with the plant set to open by the end of the year, say project bosses.

Qatalum, which when complete will be one of the largest aluminium plants in the world, is progressing according to schedule and despite the current economic downturn will be in a position to make a profit, the company says.

“The Qatalum project is progressing according to plans and the first aluminium will be produced in the fourth quarter of this year,” said Truls Gautesen, CEO of Qatalum, a joint venture between Qatar Petroleum and Norsk Hydro ASA.

Qatalum’s initial phase will have an annual capacity of 585,000 tonnes of primary aluminium, local media reported. But the project is due to reach its full capacity toward the second half of next year, when its annual production will rise to 1.2 million tonnes.
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