The Qatari Minister of State for Energy Affairs, Saad bin Sherida Al-Kaabi, rejected attempts to “demonize” oil and gas, stressing the continued need for these two vital materials for long periods to come.

Al-Kaabi stressed, during his participation in the World Economic Forum held in Riyadh, that "the demand for oil and gas will continue for a very long time." He attributed this to several factors, including the need for petrochemicals, as renewable energy plants cannot provide the materials needed to manufacture petrochemicals, which are used in many basic products.

Al-Kaabi also pointed to the increase in population, which necessarily means an increase in demand for energy. With the world population expected to increase from one to two billion people during the next three decades, the need for energy will rise significantly.

The Minister of State for Energy in the country that produces the most gas pointed out that there are still one billion people around the world who are deprived of basic electricity.

Al-Kaabi pointed to his country's efforts to reduce carbon emissions, noting that the Gulf country sequesters 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide annually from liquefied natural gas facilities.
In a related context, the Doha government official announced huge Qatari projects to expand liquefied natural gas production from the North Field, taking into account reducing emissions. 11 million tons of carbon will be isolated from this project, in addition to the construction of 104 liquefied natural gas carriers, all of which operate on liquefied natural gas, and the establishment of the largest blue ammonia plant in the world with facilities for producing solar energy and sequestering carbon dioxide.