Qatar to launch largest energy bank with 10 bln USD: official

DOHA, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Qatar will launch the world's largest Energy bank with a capital of 10 billion U.S. dollars in 2019, an official of the new bank said Tuesday.

The move came in the light of a fast-growing Energy sector in Qatar, which plans to expand the capacity of annual production of liquefied natural gas to 110 million tons by 2024.

Mohamed al-Marri, chairman of the new bank's media committee, told an Islamic finance conference in Doha that operations would begin in the fourth quarter, according to a statement obtained by Xinhua.

"The bank is going to be the largest Islamic Energy-focused lender in the world and will target the private sector and government's Energy projects home and abroad," Marri said.

The bank would focus on financing oil, gas, petrochemicals, and renewable Energy projects, he added.