Ukraine-Russia crisis is prompting countries to explore new ways of pricing oil, says Qatar
Qatar’s foreign minister says the conflict in Ukraine, and its geopolitical divisions, is prompting some countries to explore new ways of pricing oil – not in dollars.
The comments, made Saturday by Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, came after a report by the Wall Street Journal that Saudi Arabia is in quick talks with China to accept yuan instead of dollars for the oil Beijing buys.
Speaking to Hadley Gamble at the Doha Forum, Al-Thani said he did not expect such a system to be put into place anytime soon, but stressed that the economic consequences of the Ukraine war were weighing heavily. to some countries.
“Honestly, look at what’s happening and the dynamics around us right now. I’m sure there are a lot of other countries that aren’t happy with what happened and the consequences of the Ukraine crisis. -Russia, especially the economic consequences,” he said.
“And they will look and discover a parallel system [of pricing oil] … At least economically self-insured. So when we are living in a transition, this transition will not only be a political transition but it will also be an economic one. “
Last week, Gal Luft, co-director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, told CNBC that stinging US economic penalties could drive countries away from the dollar, which is often denominated in the dollar. oil.
Sanctions include effectively freeze Russia’s central bank reserves and disconnect Russia from the interbank messaging system, SWIFT.
“On the one hand, you’re sanctioning right and wrong. On the other hand, you want countries to buy Treasuries and finance your debt. That’s not a sustainable scenario,” Luft said.
Diversification of oil
Qatar’s Al-Thani also said it was “stepping up” and holding talks with European countries on increasing gas supplies.
“We are stepping up and helping some of our European partners, who are starting to suffer from gas shortages…with the limited amount that we have,” he said, noting that the majority of the partners Their gas contracts are long-term and so cannot have been changed.
It comes as European countries seek to diversify their energy supplies away from Russia – especially gas. According to the International Energy Agency, the EU imported 45% of its gas from Russia last year.
On Friday, the US said it was looking to work with partners – including Qatar – to provide at least Add 15 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas to Europe this year, with that amount set to increase in the future.
However, Al-Thani said that no one energy supplier can replace another.
He added: “I think the best way forward is to diversify supply. “This will be the only way forward. We are currently in discussions with a lot of other European countries about new long-term contracts. And this discussion is still ongoing.”
