Qatar Becomes Key Hub for GTL Industry - Al Mohannadi

Doha, January 13 (QNA) - Qatar has managed to become a key hub for GTL industry through two of the world's largest GTL plants, namely, the Pearl and Oryx GTL plants, said Hamad Rashid Al Mohannadi, Deputy Chairman of the QP Board of Directors and Managing Director of RasGas Company Limited (RasGas). "Today, Qatar has come a long way from the inception of its early plans to develop a GTL hub. Through two of the world's largest GTL plants, namely, the Pearl and Oryx GTL plants, Qatar, in association with our partners Shell and Sasol, has achieved the vision of becoming the "GTL Capital of the World" and setting the benchmark for the GTL industry. With these plants averaging a combined production of more than 170, 000 barrels per day of high quality GTL products, we are determined to keep the momentum going through sustaining the highest standards of safety, efficiency and reliability from both projects." In his address to the first World GTL Congress which began here today, Al Mohannadi said: "With sufficient and accessible quantities of natural gas to tap into we have managed to diversify our gas utilization portfolio and to enhance our mix of products to help meet the world's ever increasing demand for clean energy," he told the three-day event. "The diversification of our gas industry include LNG, gas export via pipelines, GTL, extensive petrochemical production besides energy intensive industries and long term strategic supply of electricity and soft water," he noted. Al Mohannadi said that Qatar witnessed a giant leap in size in the development of Pearl GTL, coupled with exemplary use of technology resulting in the largest GTL plant of its kind successfully going through its second year of production. The Pearl GTL plant has produced more than 3 million metric tons and has sold more than 100 shipments of GTL products to the world, he revealed. "With the advent of stricter emissions and noise regulation in dense urban areas around the world, requirements for superior performing lubricants, and a growing appetite for high-quality refined products for specialty, industrial and civil applications, we see a significant demand-driven opportunity for GTL products," he said. "GTL products are characterized as water white, virtually sulfur free, having a well-defined essentially paraffinic molecular composition, odorless, and clean burning." "As we enter the 'Golden Age of Gas' with vast resources and enhanced methods of production, we believe that GTL is poised to grow further as a gas monetization option," said Deputy Chairman of the QP Board of Directors and Managing Director of RasGas. "Being a relatively focused and growing industry, this cements the ground further for the World GTL Congress to be where stakeholders can prosper though the exchange of ideas, lessons learned and the framing of new opportunities to set GTL on its growth trajectory." With a promising future, many challenges still lie ahead, Al Mohannadi said, adding that "the formula for the success of our GTL developments relied on several factors, all of which will still be relevant in the foreseeable future; sufficient gas resources, effective utilization and control of CAPEX, a supportive country infrastructure and of course, the required technology and know-how. We have been fortunate to have all of these factors here in Qatar, to help us develop such world class facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City. We have accepted the technological risks and challenges of building and operating two world class GTL plants." He added the challenge now with the IOCs and other gas producing countries to further develop and commercialize the GTL technology around the world especially with the current conducive circumstances. (QNA)