Industries Qatar sees profit more than double

PROFIT SURGE: Industries Qatar posted first half profit of $1.26 billion. (Getty Images)

Industries Qatar, the largest publicly traded company in the Gulf state, has announced first-half profit more than doubled from the same period last year.

Net income advanced to $1.26 billion from $549 million, the company said in a statement posted on the Doha bourse website.

Industries Qatar, the Middle East’s second-largest chemical maker after Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC), benefits from discounted natural gas supplies from the government, according to newswire Bloomberg.

It pays $1.25 per million British thermal units for natural gas, compared with current spot Henry Hub natural gas prices of $8.70, according to estimates from Dubai-based Shuaa Capital.

The firm will invest as much as $3.9 billion through 2009 to boost steel, fertiliser and petrochemicals output through its four main units, including Qatar Steel Co and Qatar Fertiliser Co.

It aims to meet rising demand for construction materials as Qatar’s economy expands 12.7 percent this year, according to a Bloomberg economists' survey in July.

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