Top Oil and Gas leaders discuss challenges and opportunities facing Global Energy Market

As the world's leading exporter of liquefied natural gas 'LNG', the spotlight was on the country of Qatar and the keynote speaker at the event, Qatar's Minister of Energy and Industry, His Excellency Dr. Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada.

"The world has changed because of liquid gas," said Jim Pryor, Vice President of Chevron Corporation. "And Qatar put natural gas on the map." Dozens of executives from the world's leading energy companies honored the minister and the efforts he is leading in Qatar, including ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, GDF Suez North America and Occidental Oil and Gas Company," he added.

"Qatar's willingness to take risks to meet our goals sends a powerful message to our customers about our persistence and determination to succeed," said H.E. Dr. Al-Sada during his remarks at the event. The Minister referenced the guiding principles for Qatar Vision 2030, which outlines a plan for creating a sustainable economy for Qatar, as well as the biggest challenge facing them today, the commercialization of hydrocarbon reserves.

Dr. Al-Sada highlighted the importance of establishing global partnerships with international oil companies, and acknowledged that those partnerships have significantly contributed to getting Qatar's vision off the ground.

Several top leaders of Qatar Petroleum attended the forum with the Minister, including Hamad Rashid Al-Mohannadi, Managing Director, RasGas and Vice Chairman, Qatar Petroleum; Sheikh Khalid Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Chief Executive Officer, QatarGas; Nasser Khalil Al-Jaidah, Chief Executive Officer, Qatar Petroleum International; and Saad Sharida Al-Kaabi, Director, Oil & Gas Ventures, Qatar Petroleum.

The forum concluded with a round of applause as Bilateral Chamber Chairman David Phillips gave Minister Al-Sada a crystallized gas droplet as a token of appreciation. "Statistics show that Qatar has enough gas reserves to last the next 255 years," said Phillips. "When you run out, here is one extra BTU," he added.