Qatar to launch its first bond issuance in four years

Noushad Thekkayil/NurPhoto via Reuters

Qatar will sell its first green bond soon and the first external debt issuance in four years, the country’s finance minister has said.

“We’re ready to do it very soon,” Ali Al-Kuwari told Bloomberg Television at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

“We are not hungry for money but it will be mainly to send a strong statement” about the need to counter climate change, he added.

• GCC companies lead early sukuk moves in 2024
• Strong upsurge in UAE green sukuk ahead of Cop28
• Mubadala’s first-ever green bond order book hits $6bn

Qatar recently finalised the green finance framework to ensure compliance with the criteria for issuing green bonds, aiming to mitigate carbon emissions.

Qatar, the world’s biggest producer of liquefied natural gas, has refrained from issuing Eurobonds since early 2020, when it placed $10 billion in five-, 10-, and 30-year debt instruments.

In a recent report, Fitch Ratings predicted that the global value of the sukuk market would surpass $1 trillion in the medium term, reaching $850 billion at the end of 2023 despite “geopolitical triggers”.

S&P Global Ratings forecast issuance of $170 billion in 2023.

Higher financing needs in some core Islamic finance markets will drive demand, according to S&P, with global liquidity conditions potentially easing.