Knowledge-based Environment

How would you evaluate the oil and gas sector’s significance for Qatar?

The oil and gas industry remains the key source of income for Qatar. However, the country is actively striving to diversify away from a resource-based economy and, as part of this initiative, Qatar Petroleum (QP) has established a number of subsidiary companies, including Al Shaheen Holding. The aim of these companies is to invest in energy and non-energy related companies through acquisition and partnership with leading international companies.

How do you expect the recent natural gas discoveries in the North Field to impact your operations?

The announcement of the new discoveries will almost definitely have a positive impact on Al Shaheen Holding. Gas production requires mortaring, in turn meaning more rigs, and, therefore, a greater need for oil and gas services, which falls directly within the remit of Al Shaheen Weatherford, our joint venture with Weatherford International. In addition, this also means an increased requirement for machinery, such as compressors, turbines, and pipelines, the servicing and maintenance of which falls within the capability of our two joint ventures with GE Oil & Gas; Al Shaheen GE Services, and PII Pipeline Solutions. In addition, there are a significant number of existing wells around Qatar that are depleting, and will soon require rejuvenation and, therefore, new technology, which falls within our target investment market.

How does Al Shaheen ensure the sustainability of its operations here?

One of the mandates of our strategic plan is to focus heavily on the environment. We are actively looking to expand in the field of sustainability. Hazardous waste could include chemicals, water waste, or even metals, all of which affect the environment. We are keen to identify a partner with the know-how to work with us on environmental issues.

R&D is paramount to the energy industry. In this context, how are you leveraging your capabilities to develop Qatar’s knowledge-based economy?

Our mandate is to identify new technology. Many international companies have approached us to invest with them in developing their technology. In existing joint ventures, we always prioritize R&D, our core strength. Meanwhile, the upstream sector remains highly competitive, and we need to remain technologically current. Therefore, we are active in bringing in technology, and looking to grow that field.

How do you approach Qatarization within the company?

Qatarization and the creation of local job opportunities is a founding component of our objectives. We also actively interact with Qatar Petroleum and other local institutions to assess what training opportunities we can provide newly qualified Qataris at our joint venture companies. We already have Qataris that are now fully trained, and who will be transferred to the head office of PII Pipeline Solutions for further career development. We also provide specialized training to Qatar Petroleum, in conjunction with GE Services, at our facility in Ras Laffan, and are currently seeking to expand this offering to other Qatar-based companies. In the future, we also want to attract more university students. Here you have the tools, the machines, and the engineers to provide an opportunity for students to observe the real world. We believe that by providing both international and local training, we have a strong platform for attracting more locals to the services sector, where we currently have limited experience, particularly in senior management. Increasing the number of nationals with know-how in specialized services will be extremely important for the long-term success of Qatari businesses in this sector.