Qatar’s foreign minister has stated the dispute in Ukraine, and its geopolitical implications, is pressing some nations to check out brand-new methods of rates oil– not in the dollar.
The remarks, made Saturday by Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, followed a Wall Street Journal report that Saudi Arabia remains in sped up talks with China to accept yuan rather of dollars for oil that Beijing purchases.
Speaking to Hadley Gamble at the Doha Forum, Al-Thani stated he didn’t anticipate such a system to be presented in the near term, however worried that the financial effects of the Ukraine war were striking some nations hard.
“Honestly speaking, look at what happens and the dynamics around us right now. I’m sure there are a lot of other countries who are unhappy with what’s happened and the consequences of the Ukrainian-Russian crisis, especially the economic consequences,” he stated.
“And they are going to look and check out a parallel system [of pricing oil] … going to hedge, a minimum of, for them financially. So as we are enduring a shift, this shift will not be just a political shift however it is a financial shift also.”
Oil diversity
Qatar’s Al-Thani likewise stated the nation was “stepping up” and holding talks with European nations about improving gas products.
“We are stepping up and helping some European partners who are starting to suffer from some gas shortages … with the limited amount that we have,” he stated, worrying that most of its gas agreements are long-lasting therefore can’t be altered.
It comes as European nations look for to diversify their energy supply far from Russia– especially gas. The EU imported 45% of its gas from Russia in 2015, according to the International Energy Agency.
On Friday, the U.S. stated it was aiming to deal with partners– that include Qatar– to supply a minimum of 15 billion cubic meters more of liquified gas to Europe this year, with that quantity set to increase moving forward.
However Al-Thani stated that nobody energy provider can replace another.
“I think the best way forward is diversifying the source of supply,” he included. “This will be the only way forward. We are in discussion with a lot of other European countries right now, for new long-term contracts. And this discussion is just ongoing.”
