The state of Qatar, now considered one of the richest nations in the world, was a mere barren peninsula before the discovery of its oil reserves. Today, it prepares to host the first-ever ‘carbon-neutral’ Fifa World Cup and to showcase its sustainability to the world after facing criticism for its contribution to carbon emissions through heavy use of fossil fuels. In this blog post, I will explore Qatar’s dependency on its fossil fuels, its implications for the Qatari society as well as its implications in the context of the promised sustainable legacy of the WC 2022.
Qatar’s history with and current use of fossil fuels -mainly oil- is heavily entangled in a term called, ‘petromodernity’ which has been deeply explored in the field of Environmental Humanities. Hannes Bergthaller (2017), an expert on issues surrounding the Anthropocene, in his writing, Fossil Freedom: The politics of emancipation and the end of oil, reviews the existing literature on the term of petromodernity and makes several arguments for the necessity of thinking beyond oil. He describes petromodernity as the idea that the standard of living we claim as ‘modern’ was achieved and continues to depend on petroleum. He writes, “If we ask what it felt like to be “modern” in the twentieth century, our answers will invariably lead us back to petroleum. It fueled not only cars, ships and airplanes, but, along with them, visions of the good life, individual and collective aspirations, and a cultural style…” (p. 424) Comparing the condition of Qatar before and after the discovery of its oil reserves, we can clearly see how Qatar depicts a case of petromodernity. Its transformation from a small desert to a ‘modern’ country with iconic skyscrapers that loom over its skyline, is owed to its oil reserves. In an interview, a Qatari merchant, Saleh Nishwar, whose family has been doing business in Souq Waqif for over 100 years recalled the time before the discovery of oil as ‘a simple life’. He says, “everything was close to home and everyone knew each other. There were no telephones, no televisions, no cars. Everything evolved after oil…” Mr Nishwar’s words are a testament to Qatar’s transformation into a ‘modern’ society using oil and further strengthen the use of the term petromodernity in the context of Qatar. Many Qataris consider the hosting of WC 2022 as the height of modernity, as according to them, it is something pre-oil Qatar could never do.
The term petromodernity does not just give petroleum the credit of improving living standards but also associates petroleum with a sense of liberation and freedom. Bergthaller (2017) highlights this fossil fuel freedom in context of American life when he writes, “threats to the oil supply also constitute a threat to the liberty and self-reliance of American citizens” and raises the question, “But what is freedom, one must ask, if it depends on something that is not free?” (p. 425-426). In the case of Qatar, I argue that while the role of petroleum in ‘modernizing’ Qatar is quite clear, Qatar does not realize that its freedom and liberty is also due to petroleum. Qatar’s preparations to host WC 2022 and its satisfactory progress despite facing numerous challenges to its economy and production from the blockade of the neighbouring Gulf nations shows the world that Qatar is now wholly free of depending on these nations and is sufficiently self-reliant. Moreover, the enormous amount of money used in the preparation of a sustainable World Cup is a showcase of Qatar’s financial freedom. I argue that all of these freedoms Qatar takes pride in result from the heavy use of oil and other fossil fuel resources. Hence, while the World Cup may be a modern symbol of freedom and liberty for Qatar, this freedom only exists because of Qatar’s fossil fuel reserves.
Qatar has included clean renewable energy through different innovations like LED lighting and new cooling technology in its sustainability strategy for the upcoming WC. However, this only generates 30% of the needed energy and fossil fuels are still needed to meet the rest of the demand. A budget of $200 billion has been created to fund the WC preparations from lighting to cooling to all the necessary infrastructure, an astonishing amount since the past five WC have cost $47 billion together! Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy which is overseeing WC progress has commented that the budget for each football pitch is $6 billion. Qatar is going far beyond all the previous Fifa host nations in its finances for the WC while simultaneously working for a sustainable legacy through its World Cup. Qatar’s enormous budget is not very surprising considering the fortune Qatar gains through its oil exports. Many critics like blogger Taewan Kim hold the opinion that Qatar’s efforts for sustainable World Cup hold no value as long as it uses ‘dirty oil money’ and contributes to carbon emissions globally. Moreover, Hassan Al Thawadi declares hosting the WC as an opportunity to “showcase an unwavering commitment to sustainability – and use the tournament as a springboard to inspire millions of others… We cannot wait to welcome everyone to our state-of-the-art stadiums in 2022”. Mr Thawadi’s comment raises the question of Qatar’s intentions behind the desire to host a carbon-neutral WC. Are the gigantic finances for WC just to show the world that Qatar is environmentally conscious and using its petrodollars to fight for the environment through new technologies and innovative stadiums? Would Qatar have been able to showcase its ‘modernity’ and freedom through a sustainable WC if it did not have an oil rich economy? Furthermore, does Qatar realize the implications of working for a sustainable legacy while using an oil-based economy and heavy reliance on fossil fuels? It is important to note that since the previous years, Qatar has started to move away from oil because of its rapidly depleting oil reserves as well as fluctuation in oil prices, however, it is still heavily dependent on the hydrocarbon sector as shown by the IMF report of 2019 .
In my opinion, Qatar’s efforts towards a carbon-neutral World Cup are undermined by its heavy dependence on the hydrocarbon sector and funding obtained through its oil exports. As such, WC becomes less a showcase of sustainability and more a showcase of freedom and ‘modernity’ of Qatar, both of which are achieved by petroleum. Qatar’s desire to have a sustainable WC and its use of fossil fuels to work for it raises many questions: Can Qatar have a ‘sustainable legacy’ when it is so dependent on its hydrocarbon sector? Could the billions of dollars going into preparations of WC be put to better use like directly tackling an environmental problem of Qatar, instead of being used to showcase sustainability to the world?
Resources:
Hannes Bergthaller, “Fossil freedoms: the politics of emancipation and the end of oil,” The Routledge Companion to the Environmental Humanities (2017)
