Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 31/ Trend M. Moezzi /
Qatar is Iran's most important joint gas and oil field partner. It will soon compete with Iran in petrochemical exports, Pana News reported.
The Persian Gulf country plans to focus on expanding its petrochemical industry.
Qatar will spend $25 billion to produce more than 23 million tons of petrochemical goods by 2020. It currently manufactures 9.2 million tons of petrochemicals. In December 2011, Qatar signed a contract with an English-Dutch company for the development of a petrochemical complex that will manufacture 1.5 million tons of monoethylene glycol and 300 tons of alpha olefin. Another complex, Qafco, produces 5.7 million tons of chemical fertilizers a year. Other units produce petrochemicals that include high density polyethylene, Ethylene and propelyne.
Iran and Qatar share the South Pars gas and oil field in the Persian Gulf. South Pars is the world's largest gas field but Iran is far behind Qatar in exploiting the field's natural gas, helium reserves and gas condensates. Meanwhile, Qatar has become one of the world's richest countries, thanks to the South Pars field.
Qatar has recently celebrated its annual production of 77 million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG), making it the world's biggest LNG producer. Qatar's LNG customers include China, South Korea, Japan, India, Argentina, Spain and France. Qatar's LNG exports are more than its oil exports.
Iran has no capacity to produce LNG.
A pipeline sends 20 billion cubic meters of natural gas, two times more than Iran's annual gas exports to Turkey and Armenia, from Qatar to Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Qatar faces with a severe shortage of personnel.