Qatar to announce more LNG deals with European, Asian buyers

QATAR : Qatar will announce additional contracts to sell gas from a major expansion project to buyers in Europe and Asia, according to Saad Al-Kaabi, the country’s Energy Minister and Head of its main producer.

The producer, QatarEnergy, may also sign deals with additional partners to take a stake in the expansion of the offshore North Field, Al-Kaabi said at a press conference at Ras Laffan.

Qatar, already one of the world’s top exporters of liquefied natural gas, is boosting annual capacity to produce the fuel used in power plants and chemicals facilities by almost two-thirds to 126 million tons later this decade. The country has been securing sales contracts for some of that capacity and is still seeking to place volumes in an effort that will ensure the country remains a key supplier for decades to come.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. recently agreed to buy LNG from Qatar’s North Field South project over 27 years and is also a minor partner in the North Field East project. Qatar may soon announce a partner in a deal similar to the one signed with Sinopec, as the Chinese company is known, according to Al-Kaabi.

However, QatarEnergy has already signed deals with international energy producers for the biggest stakes in North Field South and North Field East. ConocoPhillips, Shell Plc, TotalEnergies SE, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Eni SpA hold stakes in one or both of the projects.

Al-Kaabi shrugged off any threat to Qatar’s LNG production from shipping disruptions in the Red Sea, where Houthis are attacking vessels. Most of Qatar’s LNG flows eastward, while cargoes headed to western buyers will just take longer to arrive, he said.