RAS AL KHAIMAH // Gulf nations should demand stakes in the multinational oil companies they host or push for seats on their boards, says a Qatari government adviser. Middle East sovereign wealth funds "should aggressively take stakes in the companies from the West and the East" that are active in the Gulf's oil, gas and petrochemicals sectors, said Tidu Maini, a leading adviser on economic development to the Qatar government.
They should also "insist on board representation in exchange", Mr Maini said, to ensure a convergence of interest between foreign businesses, state-owned companies and governments in the Gulf. Mr Maini, the executive chairman of the Qatar Science and Technology Park, was speaking at the Global Arab Business Meeting where he was named one of three Arab Business Leaders of the Year. The event was co-sponsored by the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority and the Swissthink tank Horasis.
Mr Maini questioned the failure of the biggest oil companies, such as the US-based ExxonMobil and the Anglo-Dutch group Royal Dutch Shell, to appoint directors from the Middle East oil and gas exporting countries on which their businesses depend. In Qatar, those two companies have been the major partners of the national oil and gas company Qatar Petroleum in strategic projects to exploit the nation's vast gas resources.
The developments include the world's biggest natural gas liquefaction facilities and its biggest gas-to-liquids project. The former produces liquefied natural gas, the super-chilled fuel that can be loaded on to tankers for export around the world. The latter converts natural gas into ultra-clean equivalents of oil-based transport fuels such as petrol and diesel. Qatar is now the acknowledged world leader in both areas.
International oil companies "need to open up their boards" to representation from their Gulf partners, Mr Maini said, "or they are never going to understand the aspirations of the region … It's very important that we start coupling." Like Qatar, the UAE has based the development of its oil and gas sector on joint ventures. The most prominent are between state-owned entities such as Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and foreign partners including the major US and European-based companies.
The five largest, ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, Total and Chevron, are partners in concessions established in the 1930s to exploit some of Abu Dhabi's biggest oilfields. Those contracts will expire within the next few years - in 2014 for the onshore concessions and 2018 for offshore. The Government of Abu Dhabi has yet to announce on what terms they will be renewed. Partnerships involving equity investments by sovereign wealth funds have already been tested in the emirate's petrochemicals sector. The Abu Dhabi Government-owned International Petroleum Investment Company holds a 20 per cent stake in the Austrian petroleum group OMV, with which it owns the Vienna-based petrochemicals company Borealis.
Borealis, in turn, is ADNOC's partner in Borouge, the developer of one of Abu Dhabi's two biggest petrochemicals complexes. On Monday, Borouge announced it had established a marketing and sales company in Beijing, strengthening its presence in China. China, which recently overtook Japan as the world's second-biggest economy, is the fastest growing market for polythene and other widely used plastics produced by Borouge. The other two business leaders honoured at the Global Arab Business Meeting were Naif al Mutawa, the Kuwaiti creator of The 99 comics, and Mohammed el Mandjra, the chief executive of the Moroccan telecommunications company Meditel.
tcarlisle@thenational.ae
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Bah
Born: 1972
Husband: Emirati lawyer Salem Bin Sahoo, since 1992
Children: Soud, born 1993, lawyer; Obaid, born 1994, deceased; four other boys and one girl, three months old
Education: BA in Elementary Education, worked for five years in a Dubai school
The biog
First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work
Eyasses squad
Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)
Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)
Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)
Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)
Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)
Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)
SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Atalanta v Juventus (6pm)
AC Milan v Napoli (9pm)
Torino v Inter Milan (11.45pm)
Sunday
Bologna v Parma (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Lazio (6pm)
Roma v Brescia (6pm)
Verona v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Udinese (9pm)
Lecce v Cagliari (11.45pm)
Monday
SPAL v Genoa (11.45pm)
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
Fight card
1. Bantamweight: Victor Nunes (BRA) v Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK)
2. Featherweight: Hussein Salim (IRQ) v Shakhriyor Juraev (UZB)
3. Catchweight 80kg: Rashed Dawood (UAE) v Khamza Yamadaev (RUS)
4. Lightweight: Ho Taek-oh (KOR) v Ronald Girones (CUB)
5. Lightweight: Arthur Zaynukov (RUS) v Damien Lapilus (FRA)
6. Bantamweight: Vinicius de Oliveira (BRA) v Furkatbek Yokubov (RUS)
7. Featherweight: Movlid Khaybulaev (RUS) v Zaka Fatullazade (AZE)
8. Flyweight: Shannon Ross (TUR) v Donovon Freelow (USA)
9. Lightweight: Mohammad Yahya (UAE) v Dan Collins (GBR)
10. Catchweight 73kg: Islam Mamedov (RUS) v Martun Mezhulmyan (ARM)
11. Bantamweight World title: Jaures Dea (CAM) v Xavier Alaoui (MAR)
12. Flyweight World title: Manon Fiorot (FRA) v Gabriela Campo (ARG)
Scoreline
Syria 1-1 Australia
Syria Al Somah 85'
Australia Kruse 40'
Results:
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 (PA) | Group 1 US$75,000 (Dirt) | 2,200 metres
Winner: Goshawke, Fernando Jara (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer)
7.05pm: UAE 1000 Guineas (TB) | Listed $250,000 (D) | 1,600m
Winner: Silva, Oisin Murphy, Pia Brendt
7.40pm: Meydan Classic Trial (TB) | Conditions $100,000 (Turf) | 1,400m
Winner: Golden Jaguar, Connor Beasley, Ahmad bin Harmash
8.15pm: Al Shindagha Sprint (TB) | Group 3 $200,000 (D) | 1,200m
Winner: Drafted, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) | $175,000 (D) | 1,600m
Winner: Capezzano, Mickael Barzalona, Sandeep Jadhav
9.25pm: Handicap (TB) | $175,000 (T) | 2,000m
Winner: Oasis Charm, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
10pm: Handicap (TB) | $135,000 (T) | 1,600m
Winner: Escalator, Christopher Hayes, Charlie Fellowes