Thanks for the blockade, we are now stronger: Qatar Petroleum

The Saudi-led blockade on Qatar which sought to bring Doha to its knees, has only strengthened the tiny Gulf emirate, the chairman of state-owned Qatar Petroleum said.

In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, the president and CEO of the state-run QP thanked Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt for their actions against Qatar, which he maintained would have no affect one of the world's richest nations.

“I would like to thank the four countries for their blockade, because it has made Qatar stronger, the people of Qatar stronger, their businesses stronger. We will come out of this much stronger than before,” he said.

Qatar's production of up to 77 million tonnes of gas per year has solidified its position as the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and propelled it to become one of the richest nations worldwide.

 “There is not a buyer of LNG that does not call on Qatar to supply it,” al-Kaabi noted, listing countries including  Japan, China, Germany, UK and even the UAE, which relies on some 57 million cubic metres of gas per day from Qatar.

We will continue to dominate the gas market and be the leader in the gas market for the foreseeable future - Saad al-Kaabi, CEO of Qatar Petroleum

However, al-Kaabi confirmed the country has no intention of cutting of the UAE's gas supply despite its actions against Doha.

"We signed a new contract for 10 years supplying two to 300 million cubic feet [8.5 million cubic metres] a day of gas, we also have a 15-year contract to supply Dubai with LNG shipment, so that's about 40 percent of their requirement for electricity," Kaabi said.

But “if you stop the gas, the biggest harm is to the people of the UAE. The people of the UAE are cousins, relatives, and friends … and we have nothing against them,” he added.

On 5 June, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt cut all ties with Doha and began a blockade on the Gulf country.

The quartet closed Qatar's only land border, banned planes from their airspace, and barred Qatari nationals from passing through its airports.

The four Arab states accuse Qatar of ties to Iran and of funding Islamist extremist groups. Qatar has denied the accusations. 

Last month, the bloc issued a 13-point ultimatum to Qatar, which included demands to close a Turkish military base, shuttering Al Jazeera media network, and ending relations with Iran.

Qatar called the demands "unreasonable" and said it infringed on its "sovereignty". 

The Gulf crisis is the worst to hit the region since the establishment of the GCC in 1981 but al-Kaabi said he remains positive about the future of Qatar's oil and gas industry.

"We will continue to dominate the gas market and be the leader in the gas market for the foreseeable future ... We are going to grow in a major way internationally in the oil and gas sector ."