Qatar, with the world’s third largest reserves of natural gas, is a strategically important market for pipeline technology specialist STATS Group.
STATS provides pressurised pipeline isolation, hot tapping and plugging services to the global oil, gas and petrochemical industries, and has had a presence in Qatar since 2011, with an operational base strategically located in Doha to offer a rapid response to its clients.
Ongoing investment over the last decade in establishing international bases has been key to STATS’ global success. Indeed, the most recent annual accounts to December 31 2020 show that 88% of the company’s £42.5 million revenue was generated outside the UK home market.
STATS Group chief executive officer, Leigh Howarth, said: “Our strong performance in 2020 was largely due to continued investment in international infrastructure which has established responsive regionalised management teams and localised workforces close to key markets, including Qatar.”
In response to increased activity levels, STATS has strengthened its Qatari operation, recently recruiting additional project engineers and technicians as the company continues to create significant in-country value.
The company has established a strong reputation for its market leading technology in Qatar with significant awards for the supply of pipeline isolation and intervention equipment to major Qatari operators as part of their emergency pipeline repair systems.
The equipment, which is stored in Qatar, is in a state of readiness for pre-planned and emergency situations and offers a safe double block isolation solution to carry out effective repairs to both subsea and onshore pipelines, with the additional significant benefit of supporting clients’ progress towards their sustainability goals by reducing the need to depressurise or flare large volumes of inventory.
Vikas Shangari, general manager for STATS Qatar, added: “We are pleased to have the opportunity to be building our in-country capability in response to a growing demand for our isolation and hot tapping services. Building on the solid foundation we have put in place over the years, our broadening of the team’s capability will ensure we have the human resource, technical skills, and ability to deploy quickly, to satisfy this demand.”
The group operates from its headquarters in Kintore, Aberdeenshire in the UK and has operations in Edmonton, Canada; Houston, USA; Abu Dhabi, Oman and Qatar in the Middle East; and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.