China And Qatar Are All Set To Strike A Major LNG Deal

Qatar Energy is all set to sign a big deal with the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation so as to go ahead with the long-term supply of liquefied natural gas across the Chinese market. The two firms are almost on the verge of finalising the agreement that will have Qatar supplying gas from its major North Field Expansion Project for the next thirty years.

That said, the report did not elaborate on the gas volumes that are going to be involved as part of this LNG supply deal. The Chinese National Petroleum Corporation agreement is going to be the second major LNG deal between China and Qatar that has been struck lately.

It was in November last year that Qatar Energy had signed a deal with one of the Chinese firms for the long-term LNG supply to China with an agreement of sales and purchase for 27 years and the yearly volume being 4 million tonnes.

According to the Reuters report, the Chinese National Petroleum Corporation has already agreed on the majority of terms with Qatar, and the new deal is expected to be similar to the previous one.

It is well to be noted that Qatar is going to expand its North Field capacity so as to achieve an LNG production capacity of 110 million tpa by 2027, which is going to be significantly higher than the current 77 million tpa capacity. The expansion is expected to be carried out in two phases and will cost to the tune of $50 billion.

According to Qatar Energy, it has already ended its contracts pertaining to construction as well as long-term charter agreements for 60 LNG carriers, which are going to be a part of its LNG shipbuilding endeavours that will in turn help in the North Field’s expansion project.