Qatar is set to sign additional long-term contracts for the sale of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as it expands the North Field, aiming to boost its production capacity by over 60% to 126 million tons annually by 2030.
Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs, stated that the expansion efforts in the North Field, both eastern and southern zones, are “on the right track.”
Al-Kaabi, who also chairs Qatar Energy, revealed at the “Qatar Economic Forum” that contracts worth 25 billion tons of long-term LNG sales have been secured, and more signings are expected this year.
In February, Qatar announced a new project in the North Field which would increase its annual LNG production capacity by 16 million tons, elevating the country’s total capacity to 142 million tons by 2030, up from the current 77 million tons.
As one of the world’s leading LNG exporters, Qatar is actively working to increase its annual fuel production used in power plants and chemical facilities by approximately two-thirds to 126 million tons later this decade.
The country has already signed contracts for some of this additional production capacity and continues to strive to enhance its output to remain among the top global gas suppliers for the coming decades.
In February, Qatar Energy penned a long-term agreement to supply 7.5 million tons per annum (mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Petronet LNG India Limited (PLL) for a period of 20 years.
The LNG will be supplied to various receiving terminals in India on board Qatari LNG vessels starting from May 2028.
Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi, the Managing Director and CEO of QatarEnergy, said: “This agreement is another milestone in the long-standing energy partnership between Qatar and India, and comes on the heels of the 20th anniversary of the first LNG cargo delivery to India.”
