Both Qatar and Saudi Arabia account for 38 percent of South Korea’s crude oil imports and 21 percent for its gas imports.
South Korea’s First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun is scheduled to visit Saudi Arabia and Qatar between Tuesday and Friday for high-level bilateral talks, nine months after a similar visit by President Yoon Suk Yeol to both countries.
Korean news agency Yonhap reported on Hong-kyun’s upcoming visit, describing it as a “follow-up” to President Yoon’s previous state visit, which took place last October. The news agency did not provide further details on the meetings’ agenda.
During his previous visit to the Gulf countries, President Yoon separately met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani. Both meetings dealt with the enhancement of bilateral cooperation, especially in the field of trade and economy.
In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and South Korea signed memoranda of understanding worth $15.6 billion, covering the sectors of crude oil, hydrogen energy, statistics, food and medical products.
President Yoon’s visit to Doha also saw the signing of several memoranda of understanding and agreements.
The memoranda encompassed cooperation in the field of national geospatial information, cooperation in the fields of smart construction, building technology, infrastructure and building development, and smart agriculture.
Qatar and South Korea also signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of small and medium-sized enterprises and startups. This was in addition to a memorandum of understanding on establishing a framework for promoting trade and investment.
President Yoon’s visit to Doha also came after South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries signed a $3.9 billion ship-building contract with QatarEnergy to build 17 liquified natural gas (LNG) carriers.
The deal marked the beginning of the second phase of the Qatari state-owned company’s LNG ship acquisition programme, the largest of its kind in the industry’s history. The project is designed to massively ramp up Qatar’s LNG production.
In 2020, QatarEnergy, formerly Qatar Petroleum, entered Ship Slot Reservation Agreements with three Korean shipyards—Samsung Heavy Industries, Hyundai Heavy Industries, and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering.
Energy has been among the key pillars of Qatar and South Korea’s diplomatic ties. Both Qatar and Saudi Arabia account for 38 percent of South Korea’s crude oil imports and 21 percent for its gas imports, per figures shared by Yonhap last year.
South Korea is among the Asian countries that hold long-term fixed contracts for LNG with Qatar. The Gulf state is among the top three LNG exporters alongside Australia and the United States.
Qatar is moving towards dominating global LNG production with its multi-billion North Field Expansion project, the biggest of its kind in the industry. The project is split into the North Field East (NFE), North Field South (NFS), and North Field West.
NFE is set to ramp up Qatar’s LNG production from 77 to 110 mtpa (metric tonnes per annum) by 2025, as the NFS will increase the production capacity from 110 to 126 mtpa by 2026.
North Field West would represent an almost 85 percent increase in production in comparison to the current 77 mtpa.
