Q Life Magazine Q Magazine June 2017 | Page 17

Qatar and the UK | Qatar University and Newcastle University Join Forces on Renewable Energy Research U K and Qatari scientists will soon be working together on a cutting-edge research project on renewable energy. This follows the award of a £400,000 grant from the UK’s Gulf Science, Innovation and Knowledge Economy Programme (GSIKE). element of the UK’s relationship with Qatar and one which we want to develop further.” Mr Sharma also sees great potential for cooperation in other research fields, for example, pairing Qatar’s energy expertise with the UK’s world-leading supercomputer modelling. Bringing together leading researchers from Qatar University and the University of Newcastle in northeast England, the project aims to better understand the combustion processes for the renewable energy resource, biogas. Obtained from landfill, animal and human bio-waste, this energy source offers huge potential for electricity generation and the automotive industry. In fact, research and development is one of the areas identified in the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the UK and Qatar’s Prime Ministers at the Qatar-UK Business & Investment Forum in March this year. By working together and building long-term partnerships, the UK and Qatar can build the foundations for decades of collaboration and discovery. The Qatar-Newcastle project is just one example of how the UK and Qatar are joining forces to find solutions to shared global challenges. For His Excellency Ajay Sharma, UK Ambassador to the State of Qatar since November 2015, “research and development is a key | Newcastle University 17