Big names in the global oil and gas industry Guyana and Qatar have forged closer ties with the establishment of an embassy in the nation’s capital city Doha. Inaugurated on May 16, Guyana’s President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali told Qatari media that the event marks the start of an “enhanced bilateral relationship.”
“We both promote peace, stability and sustainability. I want to thank all of our friends who are here to celebrate this momentous occasion,” President Ali told the gathering.
Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sultan bin Saad Al Muraiki was in attendance.
Ahead of the inauguration, President Ali had expressed a desire to develop bilateral trade across multiple sectors including food security and the energy sector.
Diplomatic relations between the two were established since 1996.
Qatar has been producing oil since 1949 which has been key in it being able to build a robust economy. And now, oil is changing the game for Guyana since the first find in 2015 and start of production in December 2019.
Back in October, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) ranked Guyana only second to Kuwait on the list of countries with the highest oil reserves per capita, ranking higher than Saudi Arabia, Norway and Qatar.
The IMF also has Guyana positioned at 9th on a list that ranks the present value of reserves owned by high-profile oil producers, as a percentage of their 2021 gross domestic product (GDP). In this regard, Guyana beats out Qatar, Oman and Algeria, but falls behind Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Libya, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Angola.
The country already has the 3rd highest reserves in Latin America – Caribbean Region, and more than 10% of the world’s conventional resource finds since 2015.
And Qatar wants to cash in on this. The country expressed interest in a direct partnership with Guyana for its oil blocks.
Guyana is looking to learn from Qatar. Stretching just less than 4,500 square miles with a population of about 2.88 million people, it is the world’s second-largest exporter of natural gas. It also holds the third-largest proven natural gas reserves in the world and is also home to the world’s largest liquefied natural gas company, Qatargas.
Qatar has a well-established history of responsible energy stewardship. Shrewd governance has not only contributed to decades of sustainable growth but massive improvements in the standard of living for its people. And according to President Ali, Qatar is one of the nation’s Guyana will be using as its primary role models on how to craft its blueprint for effective oil and gas management.
