Global Head of Commodity Strategy at RBC Capital Markets to QNA: Qatar Energy Supplies Highly Important for the World

Doha, January 11 (QNA) - Global Head of Commodity Strategy at RBC Capital Markets and member of board of directors of the Atlantic Council Helima Croft hailed the State of Qatar's energy supplies that promoted energy security at a global level. Speaking exclusively to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Croft said that the State of Qatar played a key role in securing world energy supplies in the early days of the war in Ukraine, which kept "the lights on in Europe". "If we've learned nothing in this year and the past 12 months, is a need for stable and reliable supplies of energy, and very much Qatar was seen as answering the call, and even before the war began," Croft said. The State of Qatar has a very important strategic partnership with the US, Croft said, highlighting both sides' long-term relationship that appear at times of crises. Qatar is one of the countries that responded immediately, in terms of additional flows of energy shipments, that were not required in Asia, where the weather is warm, and moved to Europe, she added. She said: "Qatar was declared a major non NATO ally at the United States...One of the key themes in every meeting we've been in is the importance of the relationship with the United States. "The United States remains a front and center relationship for this country, and I think that is a unique statement made in this region. "I think also beyond energy security, what we've seen in this war," she said, highlighting the role of Qatar in evacuating thousands of people from Afghan capital, Kabul. "Qatar played a role in helping to evacuate in that very precarious situation. So again I think about, we think about answering calls. That was another sort of key moment recently in the relationship." Regarding her expectations for oil prices in 2023, Croft said the world is expected to face huge challenges of "recession and concerns about global growth", pointing out that the past year witnessed a "tremendous volatility in the oil market". Croft said: "We had a war involving not just one of the world's largest oil producers and gas producers, but essentially we call it a commodity superstore. And so we already had a situation going into the war in Ukraine where we had the, you know the pandemic post pandemic reopening a lack of investment in the energy sector. "And we had you know oil prices, you know approaching $90.00 in advance of the war. And then we had that significant run up in oil prices to 129 and $130 Brent prices." Croft said that fears about recession and global growth really started to spook market participants. "We had the largest release from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) over 200,000,000 barrels from the SPR to try to put a lid on energy prices," she added. She added that if China managed to navigate the reopening of the country, that could be a really significant catalyst for oil prices. Croft said that world energy market basically depends on demands and supplies. In this regard, she said, "We look at OPEC spare capacity, it resides only in a small number of producers and you have still US investors demanding capital discipline of US shale companies and so if demand holds up and we don't have again. I looked at China. If we don't have a major health crisis, we are still very constructive on oil prices". She also highlighted the great roles played by geopolitics and the war in Ukraine in this crisis. Croft highlighted the sanctions on the Russian Central Bank and the possibility of doing business with the Russian energy sector. "We were in meetings where people from the administration talked to investors and said no, you can, you can do business with Russia, we've exempted oil. And then you think about the European embargo that just happened on Dec. 5," she said. Croft noted allowing Russian oil to remain in the market with a price cap, and the possibility of changing calculations in the West about willingness to support Ukraine. "Key Indian customers are abiding by the price cap. They are using washman service providers to get Russian imports," she said, highlighting a potential disruption of infrastructure in some countries and energy flows in others because of the war in Ukraine. She highlighted the sensitive calculations about the impact of the war, and possible further critical issues in the future regarding a real supply disruption. Croft added that energy transition comes at the top of the agenda, particularly for European policymakers, highlighting the Biden administration's approaches to tackle climate change. "First things that we did in the United States go back into the Paris climate accords, some very symbolic actions like canceling Keystone Excel essentially coming out early days and putting a moratorium for new leases for drilling on federal land," Croft said. "I think natural gas as a key transition fuel and a key energy security molecule has been settled at this point in terms of the fact that you have Germany rushing to complete LNG infrastructure in record time," she said. "I think governments now think about diversifying energy supply, how that's important for energy security," she said, adding that the US encourages natural gas and LNG exports. Now natural gas is a core priority, Croft said. Regarding the Atlantic Council's activities, Croft pointed out that it hosts the global Energy Forum every year in January, adding that the Russian-Ukrainian crisis and climate change top the Council's agenda for 2023. (QNA)