| Daily Times - Site Edition | Sunday, April 23, 2006 |
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Qatar, S Korea sign energy deal, gas talks ongoing
DOHA: Qatar and South Korea on Saturday signed a strategic energy cooperation deal, Qatari oil minister Abdullah al-Attiyah said.
He gave no further specific details of the deal, although he said there were talks underway between Qatar and Korea’s KOGAS on gas supply.
South Korea is the second biggest buyer of liquefied natural gas in the world and is looking to diversify its supply sources. Qatar has the third largest gas reserves in the world and is a major LNG exporter. It also exports oil as a member of OPEC.
“Our energy demand is rapidly increasing,” Korean deputy minister for commerce, industry and energy Lee Won-Gul told reporters after the deal was announced at the International Energy Forum meeting of producers and consumers. A delay to the development of Russia’s eastern Kovykta gas field has opened the way for Seoul to look for alternatives, analysts say. reuters