Qatargas defining the future

Within this short time frame, the company has evolved from being an inexperienced non-producer of liquefied natural gas, to world leader dominating the global LNG stage as the largest supplier satisfying international customers with a remarkable record of technological capability and reliability of supply.

The growing success of the company rests on the emerging role of natural gas as a key source of clean energy. In an age where populations stand challenged by the threats to their environment, LNG offers a non-polluting, clean fuel that provides energy without the kind of destructive impact on the planet that plagues traditional fuel alternatives.

Qatar's economic success and exciting future growth potential derive from the giant North Field with gas stocks estimated equivalent to 15% of proven world reserves. Massive investments in the gas sector and rapid expansion in gas exports have led to the emergence of an economy providing citizens with a per capita income ranked among the top three in the world. The economy is expected to double by 2012 due to the country's ambitious strategy to boost LNG production by 300%. By then, Qatar will be producing one third of the world's total LNG production, a staggering statistic for such a small country where Qatargas is poised to play a critical role.

Three 'super production trains' now under construction at Ras Laffan City are the largest in the world and four times the capacity of the company's original trains, stretching the boundaries of engineering know how. Among recent technological achievements was the completion of a major three-year debottlenecking project completed within a live, operating plant, without mishap.

Over the decade, Qatargas has rapidly acquired a reputation as an LNG pioneer not only in its embrace of cutting edge technology but also in the way projects have been structured and financed and how the gas is marketed. The mighty Qatargas II Project at $13 bn represents the biggest commercial deal in the history of the hydrocarbon industry. When complete, the project will ensure the company's mastery for the first time in the industry of a fully integrated LNG value chain all the way from wellhead to market outlets.

The Qatargas pioneering spirit is also exhibited through the commissioning of a new breed of super LNG carriers - the largest ever built, making a quantum leap in the capacities of such ships and representing the world's largest single commercial ship order since World War II.

As a pioneer of LNG projects in the Gulf, the company has developed extensive technological and managerial know-how to position itself at the forefront of the global LNG business. According to Qatargas' Chief Operating Officer, Faisal Al-Suwaidi, "... by successfully partnering with a select suite of world-class majors like Exxon Mobil, Total, Shell and Conoco Phillips; through the careful deployment of a dynamic and talented workforce drawn from over fifty countries, and by using its diversity as a source of strength, Qatargas is helping to define the future of the State of Qatar and that of the global gas industry generally."