Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi, serving as the Minister of State for Energy Affairs and the President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum, has made significant changes in Qatar’s energy landscape. In October 2021, he announced the renaming of Qatar Petroleum to Qatar Energy, a symbolic move that reflects the country’s future priorities and its emergence as a leading global LNG powerhouse.

Established in 1974, Qatar Energy is Qatar’s state-owned company responsible for all oil and gas activities within the country. It encompasses diverse sectors, including exploration, production, local and international sales of crude oil, natural gas, gas liquids, refined products, synthetic fuels, petrochemicals, fuel additives, fertilizers, liquefied natural gas (LNG), steel, and aluminum. Considering that more than half of Qatar’s GDP is derived from hydrocarbon resources, the role of Qatar Energy is of paramount importance.

Among its various endeavors, the North Field holds significant prominence in Qatar’s natural gas sector. Given the ongoing energy crisis in Europe and concerns over Russian aggression, Western diplomats have turned to Qatar to secure alternative gas supplies. The North Field’s development is a priority for Qatar Energy, with plans to construct state-of-the-art LNG trains and achieve a production capacity of 126 million tons per annum by 2027. Al Kaabi emphasized the commitment to environmental protection, aiming to minimize the carbon footprint by employing advanced carbon sequestration methods to capture and sequester 9 million tons of CO2 annually by the end of the decade.

The rebranding of Qatar Petroleum to Qatar Energy signifies a strategic shift in response to global changes and the urgent need to protect the planet and the environment. The company aims to play a central role in the global energy transition while supplying cleaner energy to customers worldwide through its LNG projects. Qatar Energy has embraced sustainability as its guiding principle, aligning with pillars such as climate change mitigation, operational responsibility, and social and economic development. With the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup, Qatar is dedicated to making it the most sustainable edition yet, highlighting the country’s strong commitment to environmental stewardship.

The rebranding of Qatar Energy represents a significant milestone in its journey, following its inclusion in the Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in 2019. The company’s transformation goes hand in hand with a renewed manifesto focused on sustainability. Qatar Energy’s actions demonstrate its determination to fulfill its sustainability responsibilities and secure its position as a global leader in LNG and energy innovation.