LONDON -- Standard&Poor's CreditWire 11/26/96 -- In connection with Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company Ltd.'s upcoming bond issue, Standard&Poor's today has affirmed its triple-`B' long-term and `A-3' short-term foreign currency ratings on the State of Qatar. The outlook on the ratings is stable. The ratings are based on Qatar's: -- Large natural gas reserve base, the world's third largest, which is 14 times Qatar's proven oil reserves in equivalent billions of barrels; -- Modest, but growing, oil reserves, enough to support over two decades of output at current production levels; -- Responsible economic management, underpinning the development of a modern physical and social infrastructure, and appreciable rise in lining standards over the past two decades.
