With a GDP growth rate that is hovering around 13 per cent even in these troubled times, a per capita income figure which is set to be the highest in the world, and its strategic location in the Gulf, which holds 60 per cent of the world’s oil reserves in its kitty, the small nation of Qatar has a lot going for it. To leverage all these advantages and to add to the nation’s appeal as an investment hub, the Qatari Diar Real Estate investment company is developing the Middle East’s first energy business destination, the Energy City Qatar, as part of the development of Qatar’s newest city – Lusail.
Setting benchmarks
Energy City Qatar has been conceived with the purpose of providing a nodal point which will offer players in the energy industry ease of interaction and communication as well as economies of scale and easier access to opportunities and decision makers at all levels. Hesham Ismaeel AbdulRahman Al-Emadi, an industrial investment expert and veteran in the energy sector, dons the mantle of the CEO of Energy City Qatar. He is convinced that Qatar is the ideal location for the Energy City.
“Energy City Qatar has been conceived as Qatar lies in the heart of the Gulf energy arena. With Qatar’s immense reserves of natural gas, its dramatic success in the monetarisation of those reserves, its socio-political liberalisation and business friendly reformist identity, Qatar’s pull as the energy centre of the Gulf is ever increasing,” says Mr. Al-Emadi.
The Energy City is concentrating its services on three levels. At the industry level, it will attract energy companies and related industries, thereby providing a single point access to the regional energy industry. At the corporate level, it will allow companies to settle down easily and gain access to the decision makers; and at the residential level, it will make life attractive and provide a ‘live, work and play’ solution.
Besides these, there are many factors that give the city a unique identity and position, both in the Gulf and in the world. According to Mr. Al-Emadi, “Energy City Qatar will be the world’s most technologically advanced development of its kind, equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and services. As the Middle East’s first energy cluster, first e-city and the first IT city, Energy City Qatar will be filled with a diverse mix of energy related companies, multiple customers, suppliers and peers in a vibrant, innovative environment.”
Looking ahead
Mr. Al-Emadi says that Energy City Qatar will serve as a starting point for other energy cities — in India and Libya — which will also be under his aegis. “The experience gained from constructing Energy City Qatar will allow us to reach a level of perfection and expertise that will definitely contribute in both the efficiency and effectiveness in building and launching the other cities,” he adds.