The $4.8 billion Dolphin Gas Project was today formally inaugurated at a ceremony in Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City.

Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, Crown Prince of Qatar, inaugurated the Dolphin Gas Processing Plant, the largest single-build gas plant in the world. The plant is central to Dolphin’s operations.

The event was attended by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahayan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces; Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahayan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of Dolphin Energy Limited; and Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahayan, UAE Minister of Presidential Affairs.

They were accompanied by senior Qatari, UAE and Omani government officials, Dolphin Energy executives and other guests.

The ceremony marked the successful completion of the Dolphin Gas Project – the largest gas initiative ever undertaken in the Gulf region. The seven-year construction program has seen the creation of a full energy value chain – from gas wells offshore Qatar, onshore processing plant, gas export pipeline to the UAE and substantial gas supplies to customers across the seven Emirates, a statement said.

The Dolphin Gas Project is a regional energy network which involves the production of natural gas from Qatar’s North Field, processing and extraction of valuable by-products at Ras Laffan, and transportation of the processed gas by subsea pipeline across joint UAE-Qatari waters to the UAE. From the third quarter of 2008 Oman will also receive gas from the project.

Addressing a press conference, Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, CEO of Dolphin Energy, said: "It is with great pride that our board is here today celebrating this tremendous accomplishment with everyone who has been involved in the Dolphin Gas Project.”

The overall investment in constructing the entire Dolphin Gas Project, which includes 24 wells, two production platforms, twin sealines, processing plant, export pipelines and receiving facilities has been over $4.8 billion.

Dolphin is already supplying up to two billion standard cubic feet of refined natural gas every day to utilities, industries and consumers throughout the UAE.

Al Sayegh concluded: “Today we reiterate our long term focus and vision: Dolphin is a major source of clean, new energy for the Southern Gulf and a catalyst for the region’s economic growth. We are very proud to have achieved so much – we now face our responsibility to deliver very substantial quantities of gas to our customers, every day, for many decades to come.” -TradeArabia News Service