DOHA: Minister of State for Energy Affairs, QatarEnergy President and CEO HE Eng Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi said that demand for natural gas will continue to grow and there will be a need for more supply projects globally after 2030.
His remarks came during a panel discussion on 'The Next Stage of the Global Energy Transition' at the Qatar Economic Forum, where he ruled out the possibility of the end of this decade witnessing a Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) supply surplus or saturation, even as more projects become operational, including in Qatar. He added that Qatar is moving forward with expanding its LNG production capacity and that it might consider expanding it further in the event that more gas was to be available.
The Minister of State for Energy Affairs said that Qatar's LNG expansion projects are on track, underscoring that Qatar is not facing any difficulty in selling its fuel.
He added that in the case of reasonable economic growth in the future, supply and demand will follow suit accordingly, which will necessitate yet another phase of increasing gas production in the 2030s, remarking that LNG will not be going anywhere any time soon.
The QatarEnergy President and CEO emphasized that these new supplies will not be sufficient given economic and population growths will mean an increased demand, adding that gas-generated energy, for example, will provide a reliable intermittent renewable energy backup.
The Minister of State for Energy Affairs said that Qatar's LNG production will jump from 77 million tonnes to about 126 million tonnes in 2026 to then jump further in 2030 to 142 million tonnes, indicating that Qatar is enhancing its natural gas sales after having signed agreements last year to sell 25 million tonnes.
Hesaid that Europe has realised its need for a more secure strategy regarding its gas and energy needs.
Moreover, Eng Al Kaabi emphasised the need to deal realistically with the energy transition and with quitting fossil fuels, referring to politicians' proposed solutions in this regard.
As for Qatar's criteria for choosing energy projects partners, hesaid that they are based on trust, transparency, and mutual benefit.
The Minister of State for Energy Affairs pointed out that Qatar was among the first countries to carry out oil and gas explorations, adding that many more will be conducted in Qatar and Mozambique through Qatar's partnership with TotalEnergies and ExxonMobil.In turn, TotalEnergies Chairman and CEO Patrick Pouyanne said that the world today needs to investment more in the energy sector despite being in a transitional phase towards renewables, underscoring LNG's role in this phase.
The TotalEnergies Chairman and CEO added that it is imperative to be realistic with regards to the energy transition, as demand for hydrocarbons increased last year, a demand that TotalEnergies is able to supply.
Pouyanne said that it is important to reduce the cost of energy fuel extraction, highlighting the huge cost variance between Europe and the US.
For his part, ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods said that supply and demand in the energy sector is linked to economic growth, moreover, he also underscored LNG's role in the energy transition.