Qatar, the world’s top liquefied natural gas exporter which is facing a trade boycott by some Arab states, wants to reduce reliance on imports and lift domestic production, Reuters reported.
“As part of our national duty to develop the industry in Qatar and to promote self-reliance, we saw the need to localize many of the supporting industries in the sector,” QP Chief Executive Officer Saad al-Kaabi said at an event to sign memorandums of understanding with Schlumberger and Baker Hughes.
The preliminary agreements would involve investment in production facilities, training and development, Kaabi said.
Another oil services firm McDermott signed a joint venture deal with Qatar’s energy shipping and transport firm Naqilat to build maritime platforms for offshore and onshore structures, Kaabi said, without giving a value.
Qatar expected to save about 9 billion riyals a year through import substitution after building up its local energy industry, Kaabi said, without giving a target date.
Qatar aims to boost its annual LNG output by 43% by 2023/24 to 110 million tons per year from 77 million now.