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Oil

How has oil changed Qatar economically since its discovery?
Exploratory first began in 1938, the drilling took place in Dukhan, during October.

1938

1939

In the last weeks of 1939, oil was discovered in commercial quantities, in Dukhan. 
Fun Fact:
By 1940, about 4,000 barrels were produced each day in Qatar.
Barrels (bbl): 
Unit for barrels of oil that has not yet been universally standardized.
1 bbl = 159 L
The Shell Company of Qatar was granted offshore exploration on the west coast of Qatar.

1952

1949

The first shipments of oil extracted from Qatar were made on December 31, 1949
The Qatar National Oil Company was established, in order to mantain order of all petroleum operations.

1972

1964

In this year, offshore production first began in Qatar.

Analysis

In order to answer my guiding question, the question shown right next to where it says "oil" must be answered first. The question says: How has oil changed Qatar economically since its discovery? This question seems obvious, because the discovery of oil Qatar made the country become one of the richest on the world, but there is a deeper understanding to this question. It is important to know that Qatar was once one of the poorest countries on the Persian Gulf. It wasn’t until Frank Holmes, also known as the “Father of Oil” in the Middle East thanks to his research in petroleum in the gulf countries, started looking for oil in Qatar. This made many people gain interest in Qatar in the 1930s. Oil was discovered Qatar, and the country began to export oil  in 1949. This was a major turning point for Qatar’s economy. Because of its high demand, oil was Qatar’s greatest asset, and in the year 1950, Qatar generated $43 million worth of petroleum. Between the year 1960 and 1970, Qatar’s oil production more than doubled, and it kept increasing in the remaining years. Since 1939, Qatar’s economy has been affected in one of the best ways possible, along with it’s surrounding countries in the Persian Gulf.
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