Qatar to pump more gas and boost growth

A planned 10% boost to gas production from Qatar’s offshore North Field will propel economic growth, says a ratings agency.

The expansion, announced earlier this month by Qatar Petroleum, will end a 12-year self-imposed ban on new developments in the North Field designed to prevent the nation’s reserves being depleted too quickly.

“The increase in production is credit positive for Qatar as it will boost GDP growth and government revenue once it materialises, in five to seven years,” said a report by ratings agency Moody’s.

The enormous North Field, which occupies an area beneath the sea roughly the same size as Qatar itself, contains the majority of Qatar’s natural gas.

Qatar’s GDP has grown by an average of more than 12% a year over the past decade, though since a fall in the price of oil in 2014, growth from the hydrocarbon sector has contracted, according to Moody’s.

©2017 funds global mena

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