The Gulf state has the world’s third-biggest proven natural gas reserves.

QatarEnergy’s net profit in 2021 witnessed a 132% spike, amounting to QAR 92 billion as the company moves towards dominating gas exports, CNBC Arabia reported on Sunday, citing financial statements.

According to the report, the energy giant’s overall revenue last year saw a 50.1% increase, representing QAR 124.7 billion, with an 18% increase in expenses that amounted to QAR 65.7 billion.

The promising figures, an indicator of post Covid-19 recovery, were attributed to the increased sales of crude oil and natural gas. Meanwhile, Qatar witnessed a four billion Qatari riyal surplus in the first half of 2021 alone.

Market forecasts also indicate another hike in the Gulf state’s energy sector, with a rising demand for Qatari gas amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

Several European countries have turned to Qatar in recent months in an effort to reduce their reliance on Russian gas as it waged war on Ukraine. Europe receives 40% of its gas supplies from Moscow and almost a third of the shipments pass through Ukraine.

Some of those countries included Germany, Italy, and Austria—the first country in western Europe to sign a long-term gas supply contract with the Soviet Union in 1968.

The rising demand for Qatari oil and gas, coupled with the 2022 FIFA World Cup, is set to reflect on the Gulf state’s economic growth. The International Monetary Fund predicts that the economy is set to expand by 5.4% this year, with a surplus of roughly $45 billion.

In June, the World Bank revealed that Qatar’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to increase by 4.9% this year, followed by a 4.5% growth in 2023, and 4.4% rise in 2024.

North Field Expansion project

Qatar has the world’s third-biggest proven natural gas reserves and is on its way to dominate global productions of liquefied natural gas (LNG) through its North Field Expansion project.

Under the first phase of the project, the biggest of its kind globally, Qatar is raising its LNG production from 77 million tonnes to 110 million tonnes by 2025, representing a 43% increase. 

The second part of the project, the biggest of its kind, will ramp up Qatar’s LNG production to 126 million tonnes by 2027.

Last month, Qatar concluded its announcement of partners for the North Field East (NFE), the first phase of the project. The companies include Shell, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, Eni, and ​​TotalEnergies.

QatarEnergy began looking into potential partners in 2019, with production expected to start before the end of 2025.

Discovered in 1971, the North Field covers an area of 9,700 square kilometers, of which 6,000 square kilometers are in Qatar’s territorial waters.

The production then kickstarted in 1989, during the time in which oil was the primary source for Qatar’s wealth.