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In the two decades since it first began exporting liquefied natural gas, Qatar’s economy and population has expanded rapidly, increasing demand for electricity and water. A report published in 2015 noted that the utilities sector accounts for most of Qatar’s natural gas con¬sumption. From 2007 to 2017 the country’s annual consumption of natural gas doubled from 24bn cu metres to 47.4bn cu metres, according to BP’s “Sta¬tistical Review of World Energy 2018”. In 2018 the country set the goal of boosting annual LNG output by 43% to 110m tonnes by 2024, the demand for which is expected to surge in the medium term given a number of major infrastruc¬ture projects in the pipeline, including a metro rail network and the planned city of Lusail.

For over a decade Qatar has been the world’s lead¬ing supplier of liquefied natural gas, and by 2024 the country aims to boost output by 43%. While much of Qatar’s growth in the decades after independence in 1971 was fuelled by crude oil, natural gas gained prominence in the 1990s. In 2018 Qatar announced it would leave the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which it joined as one of the first members in 1961, in order to focus on gas. Qatar’s ambitions signal it will be in a strong position moving forward as worldwide demand for natural gas increases. In addition, Qatar is taking steps to proactively develop its solar power generation. This chapter contains an interview with Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, CEO, Qatargas.

Despite a relatively small population of around 2.7m, Qatar accounts for around 5% of insurance premiums in MENA. Nevertheless, relative to the size of its economy, insurance activity remains at a modest level. Annual premiums of around $3bn account for 1.5% of GDP, compared to a global average of more than 6%. The insurance penetration rate, meanwhile, stands at less than 2%, significantly below the OECD average of 8.9%. These market characteristics suggest significant potential for further growth. In the short term, however, much of the industry will be focused on regulatory matters; time is running out for insurers to comply with a new framework introduced in 2016 that aims to align Qatar’s insurers with global best practices.

Qatar is home to some of the region’s most prominent sharia-compliant institutions. Despite operating in a crowded and competitive arena, over recent decades the country has claimed a significant share of the banking, insurance and investment segments. More recently, Qatar faced the challenges of a sustained dip in oil prices and a regional economic blockade. How¬ever, due to a prudent regulatory structure and the government’s ability to support its most important Islamic institutions, the sector remains largely unaf¬fected by economic turbulence, and is well positioned to take advantage of the opportunities emerging from the Qatar National Vision 2030 strategy and preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. This chapter contains an interview with Bassel Gamal, Group CEO, Qatar Islamic Bank.

The Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) has faced consider¬able challenges in recent years, including a dip in oil prices and the effects of an economic blockade. However, after an initial decline in late 2017, the main index’s performance during 2018 established it as one of the fastest growing in MENA. The QSE has also succeeded in attract¬ing an increasing number of foreign investors – an important development in terms of long-term growth and stability. In addition, exchange authorities have continued to streamline processes and introduce new instruments, including the mar¬ket’s first exchange-traded funds. With oil prices firming and regulatory changes set to further bolster activity, the short to medium term promises to be interesting time for the market. This chapter contains an interview with Rashid bin Ali Al Mansoori, CEO, Qatar Stock Exchange.