(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Dr. Eduardo G Pereira, Dr. Talal Abdulla Al Emadi, and Mostapha Al Masry
The development of oil and gas comes with high hopes and opportunities, as much as news of new discoveries. This is because petroleum resources constitute a crucial aspect of the economic sector where wise strategies and effective management bring high profits for human, industrial, and economic development (Strauss-Kahn, 2010).
Nevertheless, oil and gas project development can cost billions of dollars in expenditures (especially deep-water oil and gas reserves having the highest cost of development). Expectedly, countries endowed with commercial quantities of oil and gas resources could benefit from their development (Oduyemi, Owoeye, and Adekoya, 2022).
Despite this, some countries, particularly those in the developing world have experienced devastating consequences as a result of ill-advised choices, pervasive corruption, and conflicts arising from the exploration and exploitation of new oil and gas reserves; a situation best described as a 'resource curse' (Fagbemi and Kotey, 2022). Brazil and Qatar are endowed with enormous petroleum resources. These countries offer comparative, valuable insights that serve as an illustrative example of how oil and gas resources can be effectively harnessed and transformed to promote inclusive and beneficial development.
Despite signs of potential oil and gas deposits from early and current onshore and offshore seismic surveys (especially in Marine Block No. 9, where there is a possible“Qana” reservoir of oil and gas adjacent to and overlapping with Israel's Block 72), Lebanon has yet to witness any significant production or development in this sector. There is, however, evidence of emerging synergies between Brazil, Qatar, and Lebanon in oil and gas developments, although they are still in the early stages of development.
There is a seemingly strategic partnership between Brazil and Qatar. On the one hand, Brazil has generally solidified and advanced a strong trade relationship with Qatar. This is exemplified by QatarEnergy's awarding of the Sépia Surplus Production Sharing Contract (PSC) representing 21% interest in a consortium with Petrobras, TotalEnergies and Petronas by Brazil ́s National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels.
On the other hand, Qatar remains a strategic supplier of natural gas and petroleum-allied products, such as fertilizers to Brazil. The Ocean LNG, Qatar's affiliate has also signed a long-term supply contract with Brazil-based CELSE-Centrais Elétricas de Sergipe for delivery of LNG in 2020. There is great synergy between Brazil and Lebanon from a social aspect due to previous Lebanese diasporas to Brazil. However, there is yet to develop a stronger commercial relationship between both countries (especially in the oil and gas sector), except for certain oil by-products that are imported from Brazil to Lebanon.
Although Qatar and Lebanon are both Arab countries in the Middle East, a real synergy in oil and gas development is yet to be achieved between them.
Nevertheless, QatarEnergy is set to explore oil and gas in two maritime blocks off the coast of Lebanon, currently in Sea Block No. 9, where certainty is higher than in Sea Block No. 4. Both Brazil and Qatar have recorded significant progress in developing their petroleum resources and could serve as examples of experienced countries to learn from, especially in transforming oil and gas resources into wealth for national economic, industrial, and human development. Lebanon is still a province with potential for commercial oil and gas development, but uncertainty remains high with the country's discoveries. It is crucial for Lebanon to foster greater synergies with Brazil and Qatar, as they possess significant experience in the oil and gas industry.
Therefore, synergies between Brazil, Qatar, and Lebanon in oil and gas development are not extensive. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, which is gradually leading a paradigm shift from existing global energy geopolitics, could potentially intensify oil and gas development collaborations between these countries. There is also a possibility for synergies among them in order to foster global energy transitions towards net-zero emissions future and climate change mitigation, especially as information on efforts towards the transition to renewable energy resource development by Brazil, Qatar, and Lebanon is limited at present.
Dr. Eduardo G Pereira is a Research Fellow at University of São Paulo, Brazil
Dr. Talal Abdulla Al Emadi is Dean at College of Law, Qatar University.
Mostapha Al Masry is a PhD Candidate in Petroleum Contracts at Islamic University of Lebanon.