Qatari Finance Minister Meets Albanian Counterpart, UNDP Administrator
Minister of Finance HE Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari met with Minister of Finance of the Republic of Albania HE Petrit Malaj, on the sidelines of the Doha Forum in its 23rd edition. During the meeting, bilateral relations were reviewed, with particular focus on economic, financial, and investment sectors, and on the means to further develop them, in addition to discussing areas of mutual cooperation.
HE the Minister of Finance also met Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) HE Alexander De Croo, on the sidelines of the Doha Forum in its 23rd edition. The meeting dealt with discussing bilateral relations between the two sides, particularly in the field of development and sustainability. It also dealt with discussing facets of bilateral cooperation.
08/12/2025
QatarEnergy LNG Hosts Annual Town Hall
QatarEnergy LNG convened its annual Town Hall events in Doha and Al Khor this week, bringing together employees from across its operations, projects, and support functions for an open dialogue with the Management Leadership Team.
The gathering highlighted a year of exceptional accomplishments and reaffirmed the company’s strategic direction as it prepares for a transformative phase in Qatar’s LNG industry.
QatarEnergy LNG Chief Executive Officer, Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, opened the events by welcoming employes and expressing deep appreciation for their dedication throughout 2025. He emphasized that the Town Hall is a valued annual tradition where achievements are recognized, priorities are aligned, and employees are thanked for their crucial role in shaping the company’s future.
He described the company workforce as champions who consistently demonstrate resilience, professionalism, and a steadfast commitment to safe, reliable, and efficient operations. The CEO also honoured QatarEnergy LNG’s Long Service Award recipients, acknowledging their loyalty, commitment, and enduring influence on the company’s culture and success.
The company outlined a strong year marked by premier performance in safety, sustainability, operational reliability, talent development, environmental protection, and project execution.
QatarEnergy LNG’s commitment to its people remained a cornerstone of its success. Qatarization exceeded annual targets across all functions.
Looking to the future, the CEO highlighted that 2026 will be a landmark year as QatarEnergy LNG prepares for the startup of major new facilities. He stressed the importance of accelerating digital transformation, enhancing organisational agility, reinforcing reliability and asset integrity, and maintaining an unrelenting focus on safety as the company prepares for increased scale and complexity. The company will continue to invest in talent, safeguard critical expertise, and evolve its operating model to ensure readiness for the next phase of growth.
The Corporate Planning Department presented a comprehensive review of the company’s 2025 performance, showcasing achievements for each pillar in its Direction Statement and outlining key challenges ahead by emphasising key focus areas. The review demonstrated continued progress and commitment to QatarEnergy LNG’s vision as the world’s premier LNG company.
A Q&A session provided employees with an opportunity to engage directly with the CEO and his Management Leadership Team. Innovation and expansion were recurring topics, underscoring their importance in shaping QatarEnergy LNG’s operations and its competitive edge.
08/12/2025
OPEC Oil Output Slips in November
OPEC's oil output edged lower in November, despite an OPEC+ agreement to raise production for the month, due to outages in some members, a Reuters survey found on Thursday, bringing supply from the group further below its target.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 28.40 million barrels per day last month, down 30,000 bpd from October's total, the survey showed, with Nigeria and Iraq recording the largest declines.
OPEC+, comprising OPEC and allies including Russia, has slowed the pace of its monthly output increases amid concerns of a supply glut. Many members are running close to capacity limits and some are tasked with extra cuts to compensate for earlier overproduction, limiting the impact of further increases.
Under an agreement by eight OPEC+ members covering November output, the five of them that are OPEC members - Algeria, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE - were to raise output by 85,000 bpd before the effect of compensation cuts totalling 140,000 bpd for Iraq and the UAE.
The survey shows that the actual increase by the five was 40,000 bpd.
Iraq posted lower exports, according to data and sources in the survey, due to pipeline maintenance. In Nigeria, a fire on the Yoho production platform and its resulting shutdown helped lower shipments.
Estimates of output in Iraq and the UAE vary widely, with many outside sources putting the countries' output higher than the countries themselves.
While the Reuters survey and data provided by OPEC's secondary sources show they are pumping close to the quotas, other estimates, such as those of the International Energy Agency, say they are pumping significantly higher volumes.
The Reuters survey aims to track supply to the market and is based on flow data from financial group LSEG, information from other companies that track flows, such as Kpler, and information provided by sources at oil companies, OPEC and consultants.
08/12/2025
Iranian Airport Seeks New Routes to Southeast Asia
Imam Khomeini International Airport is preparing to negotiate with airlines from Southeast Asia to establish new routes, the airport’s acting head, Ramin Kashef-Azar, said. Kashef-Azar said in an interview with ISNA that the airport has formed a flight network development committee within its airport city and has made outreach to various airlines a core institutional priority. “We have planned to communicate with different airlines and institutionalize this as the airport’s primary duty,” he said.
He noted that Austrian Airlines is already operating flights to Tehran, currently running four times a week — a service that began several months ago. In addition, extensive follow-ups have been conducted to restore Lufthansa services, which are now confirmed to resume on January 16 with a Tehran-Frankfurt-Tehran route operating six days a week.
“Lufthansa is one of Europe’s leading carriers, and its return indicates that many of the obstacles and restrictions that previously caused concern for the airline have now been resolved,” Kashef-Azar said. He added that Lufthansa officials have reviewed airport procedures multiple times and, after their assessments, announced their intent to restart operations.
The airport’s top operational priority remains expanding its flight network. Kashef-Azar said efforts are also underway to ensure Iranian carriers gain access to European destinations alongside the return of foreign airlines. “We are actively engaging with new and emerging airlines to expand their presence in the country, and encouraging signs of progress are already evident,” he added. Currently, approximately 26 foreign airlines operate flights to Imam Khomeini International Airport. - Iran Daily
08/12/2025
PM Discusses Iraqi-French Business Forum
The Prime Minister's Office hosted a meeting this week, chaired by adviser Eng. Adham Al Fakhar Al-Fakhar, to review outcomes of the Iraqi-French Business Forum delegation's visit to Paris.
Discussions focused on forum sessions held in France, with participants presenting proposals and practical solutions aimed at converting talks into implementable projects in Iraq. Members of the delegation were also awarded certificates of appreciation in recognition of their contribution.
The meeting underscored the importance of holding similar engagements on a regular basis to strengthen the role of the private sector, support sustainable investment across key sectors, and deepen economic cooperation with French partners.
08/12/2025
Qatari Minister Meets Senior Advisor to PM of Canada
Minister of State for Foreign Trade Affairs, H E Dr. Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Sayed, met on 4 December, with Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada on Foreign, Defence, and Security Policy, H E Scott Gilmore, who is currently visiting the country.
The meeting reviewed trade and investment cooperation between the two countries and explored ways to enhance bilateral relations, in addition to discussing a number of issues of mutual interest. Separately, Minister Al-Sayed also met with a delegation from the Board of Trustees of the Middle East Institute, currently visiting the country. The meeting reviewed Qatar’s efforts to advance economic diversification in line with Qatar National Vision 2030. They also discussed recent developments in the global trading landscape, in addition to addressing a number of issues of mutual interest.
08/12/2025