Page 6 - GLNG Week 06 2021

GLNG COMMENTARY GLNG

Qatar greenlights $29bn

LNG expansion plan

Qatar has pushed ahead with its expansion plans, undeterred

by market turbulence over the past year thanks to its low

production costs

INVESTMENT LNG frontrunner Qatar has signed off on a energy minister and QP CEO Saad al-Kaabi said
$29bn expansion of its liquefaction capacity, at a at a signing ceremony in Doha. QP intends to
WHAT: time when most other suppliers are holding back award a contract for storage tanks within the
Qatar Petroleum has on new investments. next two weeks and all other project-related
approved the $29bn NFE State-owned Qatar Petroleum (QP) took a deals by the end of the year.
LNG expansion. final investment decision (FID) on February 8 Air Products was hired last year to provide
on North Field East (NFE), which will expand the project’s liquefaction technology and equip-
WHY: Qatar’s LNG production capacity from 77mn to ment, while Baker Hughes was picked for its
NFE will raise Qatar 110mn tonnes per year (tpy). First gas expected main compressors and turbines.
liquefaction capacity to in late 2025 and the development should reach QP is also planning an expansion in its fleet
110mn tpy. full capacity in 2027. According to Wood of LNG carriers, to carry North Field’s extra gas
Mackenzie, it is the largest single LNG project to markets. The company signed a deal worth
WHAT NEXT: ever sanctioned, and will likely be the biggest $3bn to reserve a significant portion of China
Doha has said it will upstream investment to be approved this year. State Shipbuilding Corp.’s construction capac-
finalise international QP has also awarded the main engineer- ity at the Hudong-Zhonghua shipyard for the
partnerships to invest in ing contract for NFE to Japan’s Chiyoda and purpose.
the project by the end of France’s Technip, after a selection process that
the year. ran for over a year. The contract’s scope covers Emboldened by low costs
the construction of four 8mn tpy LNG trains, The FID comes after a turbulent year for the
with associated facilities for gas treatment, NGL global LNG industry. A sizeable glut in supply
recovery and helium extraction and refining. began emerging in 2019 and only grew larger last
“This was the main contract we were waiting year as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
to sign to finalise the costs of the project,” Qatar’s sapped demand. After record numbers in the

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 06 12•February•2021