Qatar's natural resources

Official Name: State of Qatar.

Summary: Despite its small size, Qatar’s strategic location near natural gas and oil reserves has propelled major economic growth. Located on the Arabian Peninsula on the Persian Gulf, Qatar’s natural resources supply both domestic and global demand.

The emirate of Qatar’s sustained political and economic development coincided with the mid-20th-century discovery of oil in the Persian Gulf. In the wake of World War I, Qatar signed a treaty of suzerainty with Britain wherein the emirate relinquished control over its external affairs in exchange for military protection. The British had maintained a strong economic interest in the Middle East since the discovery of oil in Iran in 1908. In that year, the British established the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, which would later become the British Petroleum Company. An increasingly lucrative British asset in the region, the Anglo-Persian Oil Company exacted a concession regarding oil rights from Qatar in 1935, before oil was discovered there.

Despite the 1939 discovery of oil in Qatar, exports and bids for offshore drilling did not begin until after World War II, in 1949. The British then established themselves in local governance and remained there until Qatar’s independence in 1971. Britain’s control led to a period of gradual political, economic, and infrastructural development funded by oil revenue. After Britain’s departure from the gulf, Qatar’s government nationalized the remnants of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company’s subsidiary Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited and created the Qatar Petroleum Company. The energy sector in Qatar remains nationalized, with the Qatar Petroleum Company acting as the dominant force in both the oil and the natural gas sectors. In 2022, oil and natural gas revenues comprised more than 60 percent of Qatar’s gross domestic product (GDP), more than 70 percent of the government's revenue, and 85 percent of earnings from exports. Natural gas provides most of the energy used in Qatar itself, while virtually all the rest comes from oil. The country's use of renewable resources was negligible in 2021.

Qatar maintains memberships in several energy-related international organizations, chief among them the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, also called the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Qatar is among the original 12 member states that founded OPEC in 1960. OPEC’s members control approximately 79 percent of global oil reserves and 44 percent of global production. The GCC is a regional entity ratified in 1981 by Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Although the members do not have a unified energy policy, the GCC seeks to foster technological and economic growth in energy-related sectors through an open exchange and trade system.

Qatar is situated near major offshore oil deposits, namely, the Dukhan 1, Idd Al-Shargi, Al-Shaheen, Maydan Mahzam, and Bul Hanine oil fields. As of 2021, Qatar produced 550,000 barrels of oil daily, a decrease from 788,000 in 2010. In the late 2010s, the country began transitioning from oil production to natural gas. Qatar held 11 percent of the world's natural gas reserves, and 30 percent of those in the Middle East. The majority of Qatar’s natural gas reserves are offshore in the North Field. Qatar’s natural gas pipelines are connected with those of Oman and the United Arab Emirates via the Dolphin Project, the first transborder natural gas venture undertaken by the GCC states. The Qatari government has also devoted significant resources to the development of liquid natural gas exports, and the country ranks among the top global suppliers of liquid natural gas. By 2020, nearly 100 percent of the country's energy came from natural gas.

With a rapidly growing population and economy, Qatar’s rate of energy consumption has increased substantially. In order to increase the country’s electricity generation capacity, the Qatari government’s Ministry of Electricity and Water reallocated assets to the semipublic Qatar Electricity and Water Company. The government still maintains control over the distribution of electricity through the state-run Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation. In 2021, Qatar produced about 47 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity and consumed 44 billion kilowatt-hours.

Qatar faces several environmental consequences related to its energy consumption. In 2005, Qatar had the highest carbon dioxide emissions per capita. This level was due in part to the high energy needs of air-conditioning, water desalination, electricity generation, and natural gas processing. Additionally, the continued growth of Qatar’s economy and infrastructure has put strain on the country’s ability to maintain water reserves. Water is necessary for the production of natural gas and oil as well as the generation of electricity. Increased energy consumption in conjunction with Qatar’s natural water scarcity puts mounting stress on its water resources.

Bibliography

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