Dolphin in talks to acquire Qatar gas



The Abu Dhabi company Dolphin Energy is in talks with Qatar Petroleum to boost its gas imports from Qatar. Dolphin, controlled by the government-owned Mubadala Development, said it could receive an additional 300 million to 500 million cubic feet a day (cfd) of gas on an "interruptible basis", meaning it would not have a firm contract from Qatar Petroleum for the gas supplies, and would get the gas only when other international customers did not want their full allotted volumes. Some of the gas would be available only on a seasonal basis, it added. But that season is likely to be summer, when gas demand peaks in the Gulf but falls in the Asia Pacific and European countries that buy most of Qatar's gas. Dolphin, whose other partners are Total, the French energy group, and Occidental Petroleum, the US oil and chemicals company, has a contract to receive 2 billion cfd of gas through an undersea pipeline to Abu Dhabi from Qatar. It resells the gas to customers throughout the Emirates and in Oman. But the pipeline has a capacity to transport 3.2 billion cfd, and Dolphin has long sought to fill the excess. That aspiration has been hampered by a moratorium that Qatar's government placed on further projects to increase output from its huge offshore North Field, from which it also sources gas for the world's biggest array of gas liquefaction plants. Qatar is the leading exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), supercooled gas that can be loaded on to tankers for shipment overseas. The moratorium, imposed so that Qatar could carry out a reservoir study of the North Field, is unlikely to be lifted before the end of 2013, Abdullah al Attiyah, the emirate's deputy prime minister, has said. Qatar is in the process of more than doubling its LNG export capacity to 77 million tonnes annually by the end of next year from about 31 million tonnes last year, and all the additional gas scheduled to be pumped from the North Field has been earmarked for the expansion. However, the economic downturn has led to a worldwide slump in gas demand, coinciding with a global surge in production capacity, as existing exporters from Australia to Algeria expand their facilities and other gas producers, such as Yemen, complete their first LNG projects. That provides Qatar with the opportunity to divert gas from customers who no longer need all their contracted volumes to others willing to pay international prices for extra supplies. However, those prices are likely to be significantly higher than the estimated US$1.30 (Dh4.77) per thousand cubic feet that Dolphin is understood to be paying for its current supplies. tcarlisle@thenational.ae

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Surianah's top five jazz artists

Billie Holliday: for the burn and also the way she told stories.  

Thelonius Monk: for his earnestness.

Duke Ellington: for his edge and spirituality.

Louis Armstrong: his legacy is undeniable. He is considered as one of the most revolutionary and influential musicians.

Terence Blanchard: very political - a lot of jazz musicians are making protest music right now.

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The Brutalist

Director: Brady Corbet

Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn

Rating: 3.5/5

In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010

Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013 

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2a)
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The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

  • be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
  • not be younger than 25 years old
  • not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
  • be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
  • have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
  • undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
  • A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially

Founder: Ayman Badawi

Date started: Test product September 2016, paid launch January 2017

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: Software

Size: Seven employees

Funding: $170,000 in angel investment

Funders: friends

THE SPECS

Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine 

Power: 420kW

Torque: 780Nm

Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Price: From Dh1,350,000

On sale: Available for preorder now

The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz S 450

Price, base / as tested Dh525,000 / Dh559,000

Engine: 3.0L V6 biturbo

Transmission: Nine-speed automatic

Power: 369hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 500Nm at 1,800rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 8.0L / 100km

Rainbow

Kesha

(Kemosabe)

'Peninsula'

Stars: Gang Dong-won, Lee Jung-hyun, Lee Ra

Director: ​Yeon Sang-ho

Rating: 2/5

Quick%20facts
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Our House, Louise Candlish,
Simon & Schuster

NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

Essentials
The flights

Return flights from Dubai to Windhoek, with a combination of Emirates and Air Namibia, cost from US$790 (Dh2,902) via Johannesburg.
The trip
A 10-day self-drive in Namibia staying at a combination of the safari camps mentioned – Okonjima AfriCat, Little Kulala, Desert Rhino/Damaraland, Ongava – costs from $7,000 (Dh25,711) per person, including car hire (Toyota 4x4 or similar), but excluding international flights, with The Luxury Safari Company.
When to go
The cooler winter months, from June to September, are best, especially for game viewing. 

Election pledges on migration

CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections" 

SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"