By KUNA
London : The Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah highlighted here Monday the strategic importance of the Middle East region in the world energy industry.
Addressing a major energy conference organised by the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) in central London, he said about two-thirds of the world proven oil reserves are located in the Middle East.
As a result of the steadily declining oil reserves from other producing countries, the key role of the Middle East in supplying the world with future energy needs is likely to grow, the Qatari minister told oil executives and senior figures attending the gathering.
It is entitled “Middle East Energy 2008: risks and responsibility, the realities of energy supply”.
In addition, al-Attiyah noted that reserves-to-production ratio is much lower in countries outside the Middle East region.
This means that oil and gas producing countries have a responsibility to allocate substantial investment in order to increase upstream capacity, al-Attiyah underscored.
Turning to natural gas, the Qatari energy minister said that it is rapidly becoming the fuel of choice in power generation plants, industrial applications and residential use around the world.
Because of low carbon emissions, gas has a significant environment advantage over other energy sources, he pointed out.
On the Qatari role in addressing world energy challenges al- Attiyah said that by the year 2011 Qatari natural gas production capacity will reach 77 million tonnes per year.
Equally, Qatar is not only expanding its upstream gas projects, but it is also investing in liquid natural gas (LNG) receiving terminals in the US and the EU as well as building LNG carriers to ensure security of supply to its customers.
In the meantime he emphasized that as long as energy continues to be the most important factor behind growth in most economies, the world is likely to become increasingly reliant on the Middle East regions hydrocarbon resources.
Referring to the importance of cooperation between the national oil companies (NOC) and the international oil companies (IOC) the Qatari minister said that both sides need each other and their collaboration benefits both of them.
As national oil companies have gained the technical expertise and the financial capacity through international capital markets, the involvement of international oil companies is no longer fundamental when it comes to conventional oil operations as it used to be decades ago.
The NOC now are in need of high-tech and capital-intensive projects which could be provided by the IOC, he continued.
Another influential role of the IOC is to contribute to research and development for finding and applying innovative technology today and in the future, the Qatari minister remarked.
He made it clear that the era of confrontation between the NOC and the IOC is over.
“Now we are building trust between the two sides and the cooperation between them is becoming more healthy and widespread”, he said.
Addressing the IOC, al-Attiyah said “You cannot beat me and I cannot beat you, then let us work together”.
The conference is discussing energy security and supply, the growth of gas and the role of the major oil producers in the GCC.