Qatar’s rapid ascension into the world’s energy market through its LNG boom has allowed it to invest in massive projects, but what happens when these projects start to age?
Qatar is the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas and the wealthiest country in the world by GDP per capita. Between 2000 and 2009, natural gas production tripled to 3.15 trillion cubic feet per year. In order to continue its rapid growth rate, the country has been investing heavily in developing its energy production infrastructure and other construction projects, such as the 2022 World Cup.
“Qatar has seen huge capital investment in the last ten years onshore, to process and export its significant offshore assets,” says Mike Shepherd, general manager of Alderley, a supplier of multi product metering and analysis packages.
For now the investment trends look set to stay on course, with a production capacity of 42 million tonnes of LNG per year, the high revenues aren’t going anywhere else.
“Spending will be focused on infrastructure for capital projects as Qatar prepares for the exceptional population growth and in its readiness for hosting events such as the World Cup 2022,” says Abdulla Mannai, the CEO of Oryx Engineering Solutions, a Doha-based company which provides onsite facilities inspection, testing and re-certification, and the maintenance and repair of instrumentation, electrical, mechanical and API equipment, to the design and engineering of energy and energy-related equipment.
In the energy sector however, it seems that the focus is now shifting towards consolidation and optimisation of existing assets.
“There is a momentum building up to focus on life extension of operating assets and its integrity,” says Mannai. After 10 years of rapid, and gigantic development projects, it only makes sense that the money will go into keeping these investments operational.
“We will see development in requirements for optimisation of existing assets, brown fields as well as routine maintenance work in the near future which will require the most cost effective services as well as introduction of new techniques and technology to provide on ground services more cost effectively,” he explained.
This will follow with further growth after 2016 as new plants are being constructed.
Shepherd agrees that there is going to be a shift in spending trends in Qatar.
“Recent spending has seen re-investment in existing plants at Qatargas for such projects as Helium and LNG loading vapour recovery, as Qatar moves towards a greener and environmentally improved future.”
Future spending will also see investment in increased plant efficiency leading to increased output and further metering, technological advances in metering, environmental factors and as the supplied plants begin to age, obsolescence and ultimately replacement services, according to Shepherd.
It seems that the push towards optimisation and consolidation is being felt throughout Qatar’s oil and gas industry. “As the offshore fleet size and age increases, there will be more demand for maintenance and repair services to be made available,” says Abu Bakar Mohd Nor, CEO of N-KOM.
The company undertakes repairs, upgrading and refurbishment projects for various jack up rigs at its shipyard facility.
“With the increasing activity in the offshore sector, there are many opportunities for N-KOM to tap into and contribute significantly to the maintenance and growth of this industry,” says Nor.
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But there are going to be challenges ahead, for Qatar, particularly in the availability of qualified and experienced resources.
“Whilst there has been a slowdown in the last few years with the global economic downturn, the situation is now changing. In the region, there are countries that are undergoing exception growth through energy related capital projects and resources will need to be managed,” says Mannai.
For Mannai, this means torganisations will need to ensure they have the right strategies planned to have the necessary resources available and how to retain them.
Synectics security systems
Synectics Industrial Systems, an integrated security and surveillance technology developer, has developed a bespoke CCTV solution to protect the world’s largest Gas to Liquids plant in Ras Laffan Industrial city, Qatar.
The system, developed by Synectics, enables over 300 camera stations protecting onshore/offshore critical process areas and equipment, as well as key locations such as site access points, office buildings, warehouse space and the entire perimeter fence, to be viewed and controlled from any of the nine specified control centre workstations.
Any of the cameras can be viewed on the 42” wall display monitor connected to the central management system. The cameras are connected to a video encoder which enables footage to be streamed via the LAN system to the central PSN servers where all footage is recorded.
The system has been designed to withstand the harshest industrial and hazardous conditions. The CCTV camera stations utilise a range of technologies to improve plant protection.
The $19 billion Pearl GTL Project, located in Ras Laffan Industrial City, is a joint development between Qatar Petroleum and Shell. It spans 2.5 square kilometres – roughly the size of New York’s Central Park.
The project was designed to convert natural gas into valuable cleaner-burning liquid fuels and products such as GTL gasoil, naptha, kerosene, normal paraffins and base oils.
