Kuwait Energy signs USD 150m accord with Qatari bank 

(MENAFN - Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) Kuwait Energy has signed a strategic investment deal worth USD 150 million with Qatar First Investment Bank, according to a press release issued by the company on Sunday.

The Qatari bank, according to the agreement, will support Kuwait Energy, its expansion plans and help in solidifying its status as a pioneering regional company in the sector of exploration and production of oil and gas.

The bank, in June 2011, acquired a USD 16 million stake in the company, the net profits of which climbed to USD 34.8 million the same year, with an increase of 59 percent as compared to 2010.

Abdullah Bin Fahad Al-Merri, the board chairman of the bank, who was cited in the press release, indicated that the bank renewed support for the company came in shadow of unprecedented growth of the sector of oil and gas exploration and production in the Middle East.

Al-Merri said he and his staff were looking forward for pursuing work with the company and its experienced personnel to bolster its status as a leading and independent company in the region.

Annual growth of production of Kuwait Energy amounted to 43 percent between 2007 and 2011. Its proven and estimated reserves of operational stakes reached, in the end of 2011, some 235.3 million barrels of oil per day.
For his part, Dr. Mansour Bou-Khamseen, the managing director of the company, said Kuwait Energy, through this accord, is seeking to enhance its role as a leading and independent supplier of expertise of exploration and production in the Middle East.

Kuwait Energy, founded in 2005, is specialized in the exploration of petroleum and gas. It has operations in Egypt, Iraq, Yemen, Oman, the Ukraine, Latvia, Russia and Pakistan.

The Qatari bank conducts its operations according to Islamic Shariaa law.