The Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Companies is to set up in Doha a $100-million training and research facility to focus on gas-to-liquids (GTL) technologies.

The facility, dubbed Qatar Shell Research and Training Centre, will open at Qatar's Science and Technology Park (STP) in early 2006, the company said.
Shell signed a 10-year lease agreement with the Qatar Foundation, the non- profit organisation that manages the Education City and STP to set up the facility. It is planning to spend $100 million over 10 years for its activities at the STP.
The centre will be part of Shell's global research and technology organisation. It will initially focus on upstream and gas to liquids (GTL) technologies, technical services and a related training centre.
The activities will concentrate on developing and utilising technology for sophisticated modelling of subsurface reservoirs to enhance utilisation of oil and natural gas resources.
In addition, Shell will work on developing new technology to enhance production from oil and ga fields. Jeroen van der Veer, chief executive of Shell, said the company expects the facility to become one of its centres of excellence in the world.