The Foundation aims to become the leading think-tank in the Arabian Gulf region and one of the leading institutions in the world in the areas of energy and sustainable development. The Foundation intends to offer advice and share knowledge by providing information, research and analysis on Energy and Sustainable Development, primarily related to the region.
H.E. Al Attiyah’s rich experience and comprehensive expertise in the field spearheads the Foundation. Excerpts from an exclusive Q&A* with him on the ocassion of the recent launch of the Foundation:
Why did you create the Foundation and what is your vision for the Institute?
I am a man who smells energy and lives energy. I cannot change! I am not a businessman and have never worked in business. I decided after more than 40 years in the energy industry to create The Abdullah Bin Hamad al-Attiyah Foundation for Energy and Sustainable Development.
I would like to see the Foundation become the leading think-tank in the region and one of the leading institutions in the world in the areas of energy and sustainable development. The Foundation will aim to give advice and share knowledge, while specializing in research and analysis. We will create workshops, white papers, seminars and studies on various aspects of energy – how do we deal with the market, with oversupply, demand and prices?
What will be important areas of focus for the Foundation?
We will advise governments and companies on how to build their own projects, how to cut the fat in their expenses, how to avoid market shocks, how to be prepared, how to make the right calculations and how to plan ahead both in the short term and the long term. We want people to knock on our door with questions which we will aim to answer based on our vast experience. The Foundation will have leading experts from around the world, thinking clearly without the burdens and pressures of bureaucracy, budgets or politics.
I strongly believe in empowering our citizens. Educating our citizens is vital for the future of the Gulf region, which faces many challenges, including that of heavy energy consumption. The region has witnessed major developments and now faces big power shortages. It needs more gas and more oil. The local market has huge consumption, which mostly comes at the expense of exporting crude oil.
The Gulf countries have to rethink the generous subsidies they have, they cannot afford them anymore and will have to look at alternatives. They have to reduce subsidies and prepare people to accept that change. The people will protest because they are used to cheap or free electricity and power. I believe this will eventually change culturally because people will realize that they cannot keep depending forever on a depleting product. Young, educated people will be instrumental to that change.
How do you think the development of young Qatari talent for the energy industry is progressing?
Developing the energy industry in Qatar was not easy at the start. We had to educate ourselves, but we learned quickly. We should not deny that our foreign partners gave us a lot of technical support that helped us to develop.
Now we are very proud that Qatar’s energy industry is fully managed by Qataris as chief executive officers, and that we have created very successful technical and commercial teams.
We started to create scholarships for Qataris and sent hundreds to study at good Universities especially in the United States, including the current QP CEO Saad Al-Kaabi. Our mission was to prepare young Qataris who can face the challenges of the future. Foreigners come and then leave, but citizens never leave. You cannot just build your future on foreign expertise.
