Petroleum gases and other gaseous hydrocarbons made up QAR 6.6m (about $1.8m) of Qatar’s exports to Japan in 2023, according to Doha’s Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA).
QatarEnergy President and CEO Saad Al-Kaabi has held meetings with officials in Japan over the enhancement of the two countries’ energy affairs.
In a statement on Wednesday, QatarEnergy said that Al-Kaabi, who is also Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs, discussed future and existing cooperation in the energy sector.
“The Minister of State for Energy Affairs[…]concluded a working visit to Japan during which he held meetings with senior Japanese industry leaders on cooperation in the energy sector,” QatarEnergy said.
On Tuesday, Al-Kaabi met Muto Yoji, Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, over “energy relations and cooperation”.
This followed separate meetings with senior executives of key Japanese energy, power, and shipping companies including JERA, Chubu Electric, Mitsui, Marubeni, Idemitsu, Kansai Electric among many others.
The visit came in what appeared to be a regional visit that included a stopover in South Korea, where he met the country’s Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy, Duk-geun Ahn. The meeting also tapped into energy relations between Doha and Seoul.
The Asian countries have been among the key destinations for Qatari gas, with Japan being the first to sign a sale and purchase agreement of liquified natural gas (LNG) with the Gulf country in the late 1990’s.
After China, Japan stands as the world’s second largest LNG importer followed by South Korea.
Last year, petroleum gases and other gaseous hydrocarbons made up QAR 6.6m (about $1.8m) of Qatar’s exports to Japan, according to Doha’s Planning and Statistics Authority (PSA).
The figure of Qatari exports to South Korea in the same category stood at QAR 38.6m ($10.6m) in the same year, according to PSA.
The gas rich Gulf country is ramping up its local LNG production with its multi-billion North Field expansion project.
Initially split into two parts, the North Field East (NFE) and the North Field South (NFS) were set to ramp up the LNG production from 77 mtpa (million tonnes per annum) to 126 mtpa by 2026.
On February 25, QatarEnergy unveiled the North Field West, which would boost the local LNG production to 142 mtpa before the end of 2030. The output of the North Field will increase by 85 percent by 2025, boosting Qatar’s economy.
