Qatar was a small desert country in the Persian Gulf, where most people depended on pearl mining and small sea-related businesses. Then natural gas completely changed the fortunes of this country. In the 90s, Qatar started producing LNG i.e. Liquefied Natural Gas on a large scale and sending it to the world through the Strait of Hormuz. Due to this he started earning billions of dollars every year. In just 30 years it became one of the richest countries in the world. But after 28th February everything suddenly changed. After the war started, the Strait of Hormuz was closed and Qatar’s access to the world was almost cut off. News of war and tension has also affected tourism and business. Due to this the risk of recession in the country has increased. India also buys large quantities of natural gas from Qatar. According to different reports, about 40% to 47% of India’s total LNG imports come from Qatar. Gas was converted into liquid, then luck changed. In 1971, a huge gas reserve named North Field was found in Qatar. It is counted among the world’s largest natural gas reserves. At that time, gas was transported to most countries in the world through pipelines. The problem was that Qatar is a small Gulf country and laying a pipeline directly from it to Europe or Asia was extremely expensive and difficult. Then Qatar played a big gamble. He adopted the technique of making his natural gas liquid by cooling it very much. In this the gas is cooled to about minus 162 degrees Celsius. When the gas gets so cold, it contracts and becomes liquid and its size becomes about 600 times smaller. This is called LNG i.e. Liquefied Natural Gas. This made it possible to send gas around the world by ships instead of pipelines. Qatar emerged as an energy superpower from here 30 years ago, the first consignment of LNG was sent by Japan. In 1996, the first consignment of 60 thousand tons of LNG was sent to Japan. After this, production increased rapidly and by 2010, Qatar’s capacity reached 77 million tonnes annually. More than 60 percent of Qatar’s income came from gas and related businesses. This earning changed the face of Qatar’s desert. Where once there were unpaved roads and empty sandy fields, today stand tall corporate buildings, wide roads and modern cities. Such irrigation systems were created in the cities that greenery, grass and bright flowers started appearing even in the middle of the desert. Cities like Doha transformed into modern metropolises. Qatar built a metro network that connects the capital Doha to the city of Lusail in the north. A huge mall with a Paris-like design was built in Lusail and a theme park with artificial snow was also built. Qatar organized the world’s most expensive Football World Cup in the year 2022. Not only this, he created a sovereign wealth fund of about $600 billion, which invested in London’s Heathrow Airport, New York’s Empire State Building and big properties around the world. Qatar became rich after building Ras Laffan City. Ras Laffan has played a huge role in Qatar’s economic success. It is considered the heart of Qatar’s gas economy. Due to this industrial city situated in the desert 80 km north of Doha, Qatar became one of the largest LNG exporters in the world. It is spread over an area of more than 100 square miles. Gas processing and LNG plants have been built here. A long industrial strip was built on the seashore in the southern part of Doha, where ammonia and fertilizer are prepared from gas. Between 1990 and 2010, Qatar’s economy grew at an average rate of 13 percent each year. For this rapid development, the country invited a large number of foreign laborers and professional employees. Today, about 90 percent of Qatar’s 32 lakh population are foreign citizens. To further build on this success, Qatar announced in 2019 that it would increase LNG production capacity to 126 million tonnes per annum by 2027. Before the war its capacity was about 77 million tonnes. This expansion was counted among the largest energy projects in the world. But due to war all this has stopped. Qatar’s Ras Laffan damaged by Iranian attack It was targeted by Iran in the recent war. Missile and drone attacks damaged some of Ras Laffan’s vital equipment, reducing Qatar’s gas production capacity by about 17 percent. For this reason, this area has now become Qatar’s biggest concern. Qatar’s largest gas production center Ras Laffan is almost closed. The roads there have been closed. Loading cranes stand silent at the huge Hamad Port, south of the capital Doha. The movement of ships has almost stopped. The hotels, luxury shops and markets of the capital are silent. Ahmed Helal, managing director of a strategic advisory company named Asia Group, said that Qatar’s entire economy depends on gas export. According to him, “Whatever is seen in Qatar today has been created because of the wealth that came from energy. That is why the country is now moving towards a very difficult economic situation.” When Hormuz was closed, Qatar became distant from the world. Hormuz is a means of bringing essential goods to Qatar. Cars, machines, fruits, vegetables and other everyday items also come through this route. Now this supply has stopped. Neighboring countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE have pipeline routes that do not depend on the Strait of Hormuz. But Qatar is completely trapped in this waterway. Just 24 hours after the Iranian blockade began, Qatar Energy said it would not be able to fulfill its gas supply contracts. Experts say that even if Hormuz opens tomorrow, it may take years to return production to previous levels. Qatar Energy has suffered billions of dollars in losses since the war started. The country is facing an additional hit of hundreds of millions of dollars with each passing day, as gas sales and ship rental earnings have come to a complete halt. Qatar’s economy is in danger of shrinking by 8.6% after the stoppage of LNG supply. Qatar’s economic growth rate estimates have also been reduced. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that Qatar’s economy could shrink by 8.6% this year. To understand this in simple language, suppose last year the economy of Qatar was worth Rs 100, then shrinking by 8.6% means that this year it will reduce to around Rs 91.4. IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gorinchas said that the longer the strait remains closed, the worse the situation will become. The war also harmed Qatar’s tourism. The war also exposed Qatar’s second major weakness. For the last few years, Qatar has been trying to move out of the image of just an oil-gas country and make itself a center of tourism, finance and international business. In 2019, it abolished the condition for foreign companies to have local partners. Transit passengers began being given subsidies to stay in luxury hotels. From Formula-1 to fencing tournaments, some international sporting event was taking place almost every month. But the situation changed after the war started. America and many countries issued travel warnings. After this the number of foreign tourists fell rapidly. Many multinational companies started sending their employees out fearing regional instability. In March the World Travel and Tourism Council estimated that the Middle East was losing about $600 million a day in tourism. Qatar is ordering vegetables through air cargo. On one hand, the Qatar government is trying to show normalcy among the people and on the other hand, it is busy dealing with the crisis. Qatar imports about 90 percent of its food. After the closure of the sea route, fresh vegetables coming from Europe and grains coming from America are now being brought by expensive air cargo or trucks via Saudi Arabia. Normally in such a situation inflation would have increased rapidly, but the government is trying to control prices by giving huge subsidies. According to supermarket employees, prices of items like avocados, which are being airlifted from countries like Tanzania, have increased by only 5 to 10 percent. People say they still feel safe, but the attack on Russ Laffan is still fresh in people’s minds. Many people said that on the night of the attack, a huge plume of fire was visible from Doha and the pungent smell of smoke was in the air. Even if oil earnings stop, Qatar still has immense wealth. Economic experts believe that even if gas earnings stop for many years, Qatar still has enough savings to continue paying salaries and essential government services. Qatar has foreign savings of about 600 billion dollars (about Rs 50 lakh crore). The Qatar government has invested in major properties and companies around the world. SP Global Ratings also this month maintained Qatar’s credit rating, saying the country had large financial reserves. Still, the biggest concern of the government is to retain foreign companies and foreign employees in the country. Authorities have put pressure on many international companies not to shut down their operations and call back employees.
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होर्मुज स्ट्रेट बंद होने से कतर का गैस निर्यात ठप: इकोनॉमी 8.6% गिर सकती है; यहां से ही भारत का सबसे ज्यादा LPG आयात
