It is a pleasure to visit your friendly country of great civilization and to be with you here today at the Indian Chamber of Commerce , in the context of our keenness on underlining the close relations between Qatar and India and our interest in strengthening cooperation between our two countries in various spheres of trade and investment.

      The development in the world economic order and the radical changes in many areas on the international arena, have increased the need of cooperation and interdependence between countries so as to face the responsibilities of developing their societies and the welfare of their citizens, and achieve optimum utilization of their resources and increase investment opportunities among them.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

      The relations between our two countries have a long, historical dimension and a bright present which promises that its future will witness further progress. India, with its economic capabilities, its technological potentials and qualified manpower, and Qatar with its ambitious advancement project can always find new factors that enhance their partnership. I would like to commend the government and people of the Republic of India for the spectacular successful development they have achieved. I also appreciate the participation of the Indian manpower, which is about 25% of the expatriate labour force in our country, in Qatar’s efforts for modernization and development throughout the last years.

      I note with great satisfaction the growth of economic relations between our two countries in all fields, especially in those of oil, natural gas, fertilizers and petrochemicals, since the two governments signed the New Delhi Agreement in 1984. This proves that there are renewable opportunities for increasing our cooperation, such as the success of our experience in exporting gas to the Republic of India, which provides it with the energy it needs for developing its economic capabilities.

Honourable Audience,

      The project of exporting Qatari gas to India is the first LNG founding project between the developing countries which has managed to weather many challenges, thanks to our joint will. Our efforts in this respect started in 1997 when the experts considered liquefied gas to be the fuel of the rich world alone, and that it is only suitable for a limited number of markets of a special nature such as Japan, Korea and some European countries. We heard many negative remarks and frustrating expectations on the impossibility of implementing such a project. But we accepted the challenge, out of our belief in the strength of the Indian economy and the wisdom of those in charge of the energy sector in your country and their ability to take the decision they consider to be clearly in the interest of the development process. Our joint efforts and determination to go ahead with the implementation of this project have been - thank God - crowned with success, where we were able to sign an agreement for exporting 7.5 million tons of liquefied gas annually to the Indian markets in two phases; the first is to export 5 million tons annually to Gujarat State, where 3.2 million tons were actually shipped after exporting 52 shipments to Petronet Company, the first of which arrived in India at the beginning of 2004. The Second phase is to export 2.5 million tons to Cochin in Kerala and, at present, negotiations are underway between Rasgas Company and Petronet on details of executing it.

      In addition to gas, the Indian petrochemicals market receives also special attention from the State of Qatar, where its exports to India in 2004 alone totaled around 15 thousand metric tons of low density Poly-Ethylene and about 100 thousand tons of Methanol, in addition to the sale of Ethylene and other petrochemical products.

      Qatar’s fertilizer exports covered about 26% of the needs of the Indian market, which is expected to increase with the coming into operation of QAFCO (5) in 2009. Besides, India is the main market for Qatari Sulphur, having imported last year about 90% of our country’s produce of this important industrial substance.

      Moreover, I am pleased, Ladies and Gentlemen, to see substantial growth in the volume of the exports of steel from the State of Qatar to the Republic of India. In 2004, the exports of that material totaled about 8 million U.S. Dollars and started afterwards to rise up tangibly till they reached at the end of the first quarter of this year 7 million U.S. Dollars, which makes us feel optimistic about the growth of cooperation between our two countries in this sphere as well as in other fields.

      As for Qatar’s imports from India, they totaled about 330 million Qatar Riyals in 2004. They include equipments, cottons, plastics and plastic wares, cement, clothes, iron and steel manufactures and a number of food products.

      I am also pleased that an agreement has recently been signed between India and Qatar to evaluate and participate in production in an off-shore petroleum block in Qatar, the area of which is about 120 square kilometers.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

      We look forward to deepening the cooperation between Qatar and India in the fields of oil, natural gas, petrochemicals, steel industry and other strategic industries that are important for our two countries. We also seek to encourage the Qatari private sector to participate in the stock market and direct investments in India. While appreciating the present cooperation between our two countries, I hope that it be accompanied by more thinking about the future, and work for strengthening the bases of this cooperation because I am totally convinced that it would be of great benefit to our two peoples.

Your Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

      I would like on this occasion to express our hope that you would have the opportunity to visit the State of Qatar to meet with the thinkers, businessmen and decision-makers to review the means of promoting cooperation between our two countries. I thank you for your hospitality and warm reception accorded me and my accompanying delegation, and wish you every success.

May the peace, the mercy and blessings of God be upon you.