A $200-billion infrastructure programme launched by Qatar as part of the World Cup 2022 preparations could see higher costs and delays because of the slump in oil prices, said a report.

A study by the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics (MDPS) said that “continued volatility” on the oil market was likely to have consequences for the vast construction projects underway, reported Arab News.

The MDPS predicted that Doha will run budget deficits for at least three years as it adjusts its energy-reliant economy to the fall in oil prices, which have dropped by more half since 2014, stated the report.

It also confirmed that Qatar will for the first time introduce a value-added tax in 2018, in the form of a five per cent levy on certain goods that was agreed by GCC finance ministers this month.

“Most risks to the outlook are grounded in international oil price movements,” the MDPS said in its “Qatar Economic Outlook” study.

“If they (oil prices) remain low for an extended period, the fiscal and external accounts deficit will be more pronounced requiring funding efforts,” it stated.

The World Cup is expected to cost about $30 billion, with stadiums accounting for $10 billion of that, according to the event organisers.

The MDPS study pointed out that Doha will run a budget deficit of 7.8 per cent this year, Qatar’s first in 15 years. This will increase to 7.9 per cent in 2017 and fall to 4.2 per cent the next year, it added.