Korea, Qatar agree to boost trade

President Moon Jae-in, right, shakes hands with Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, left, Qatar's head of state, at the start of their summit at Cheong Wa Dae, Monday. Yonhap

By Kim Yoo-chul

Leaders of South Korea and Qatar agreed to expand bilateral trade and economic cooperation at a summit in Seoul, Monday.

President Moon Jae-in and his Qatari counterpart Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani agreed to boost bilateral cooperation in areas of smart farming, smart grid, education and training, according to Cheong Wa Dae.

The visit came as South Korean shipbuilders are bidding to win contracts for building liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers from Qatar Petroleum (QP). QP is a state-owned oil company in Qatar, which recently decided to expand its fleet by up to 60 LNG carriers.

“Given the geopolitical locations, both Qatar and South Korea are ideally positioned to expand bilateral tie-ups in shipping and shipbuilding. As the global shipbuilding and shipping industries are putting more focus on eco-friendly vessels, if Qatar replaces its outdated vessels with those powered by LNG, then the global demand for LNG ships will also rise,” Moon said, adding South Korea is dependent upon imports of LNG from Qatar, according to press pool reports.

In a text to reporters, presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said Qatar plans to order up to 60 new LNG carriers from shipbuilders. Qatar is South Korea's largest supplier of LNG.

“Given South Korea's proven track record in winning orders for value-added vessels and delivering them on time, chances are very high South Korean shipbuilders would be considered the most-preferred candidates to win the upcoming new ship orders,” presidential spokesman Kim said quoting remarks from Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) CEO Jung Sung-leep at the luncheon after the summit.

Qatar operates 50 LNG carriers. The majority of these vessels were built and delivered by Korea's top-three shipbuilders including Hyundai Heavy and Samsung Heavy. South Korea and Qatar established diplomatic ties in 1974. They were upgraded to a comprehensive partnership in 2007.