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Qatar prepares new gas output increase amidst worldwide price collapse

Qatar will raise natural gas production in spite of a current high drop in global prices, in a. longterm bet on increasing need for the less polluting fuel in. Europe and Asia.

QatarEnergy chief Saad al-Kaabi said on Sunday a new. expansion of its liquefied gas (LNG) production will include. 16 million metric tons annually to its expansion strategies, bringing. total capability to 142 million loads each year (tpy).

The Qatari statement comes as Asian LNG rates have. recently collapsed to a nearly three-year low as. higher-than-usual temperature levels during the Northern Hemisphere. winter have slashed need. LNG is gas that is super-cooled to a. liquid, which decreases its volume to permit transportation by ship.

Asian and European gas rates surged to a record in 2022. following Russia's intrusion of Ukraine and the subsequent cutoff. of Russian gas materials to Europe.

Amidst the cost rise, U.S. gas suppliers filled the. supply vacuum, developing themselves as the world's greatest. LNG exporter in 2023, exceeding Qatar, though Qatari products. Helped to change the volumes.

The Qatari statement likewise follows a decision from. U.S. President Joe Biden to

time out approvals

for applications for brand-new LNG export terminals for. ecological evaluations, prompting cautions from

gas importers

that the relocation would jeopardize future energy security. worldwide.

In the announcement, Kaabi stated Asian gas markets would. continue to grow and Europe would still require more gas for the. foreseeable future.

We still think there's a huge future for gas for at least 50. years forward and whenever we can technically do more, we'll do. more, he said at a news conference in Doha.

We see that Europe is going to need gas for a very, really. long period of time. The development in Asia is definitely going to be. larger than the growth in Europe, basically driven by population. development.

With this added boost, output from Qatar's North Field will. increase from 77 million tpy of LNG presently to 142 million tpy by. 2030, an 85% boost in production.

Even as costs have dropped, major gas manufacturers such as the. U.S., Australia and Russia are looking for to increase output,. banking on additional need growth and to profit from their gas. materials amid concerns that it might not be required years from. now if the energy shift makes green energy cheaper.

This most current expansion may not be the last for Qatar as Kaabi. stated appraisals of its gas tanks would continue and. production would be additional broadened if there is a market requirement.

BEARISH CYCLE

Experts at Goldman Sachs stated in a note on Sunday the. Qatari growth will extend the bearish cycle they see for. LNG markets for the 2nd half of this decade.

New worldwide capability anticipated to come by the end of the. decade is equal to half of the international LNG supply in 2023, they. stated.

The oversupply will in our view cause increasing. threats, especially from 2026, when we expect the Qatari growth. to start to come online, that global gas costs decrease to. supply cash costs, possibly causing the cancellation of. U.S. LNG exports, much like in 2020, they stated.

They said, Qatar benefits from the growth. announcement because it is a low-cost LNG supplier and it contributes to. the image of Qatar as a reputable supplier, specifically after. the U.S. pause was announced.

State-owned QatarEnergy has actually already signed some supply. handle Asian and european partners for the North Field. expansion project, which was anticipated - prior to Sunday's. statement - to begin producing 126 million tpy of LNG per. year by 2027, from the present 77 million tpy.

Expedition activities in the west of the North Field. prompted the business's choice to expand further.

Kaabi did not give a cost for the project however stated it would. be in the billions of dollars.

We will start preliminary engineering research studies for the. project and then at the right time we will reveal just how much is. the cost when the job is settled.

In December, Kaabi informed that QatarEnergy had been. drilling wells to examine growth opportunities beyond the. North Field East and North Field South stages.

This latest growth will need the construction of 2. LNG trains, in addition to six currently underway for the earlier. expansions.

On collaborations for the new trains, Kaabi stated QatarEnergy. will go on and begin the engineering phase of this project on. its own without seeking partners and after that take a choice on. partnerships later.

The North Field is part of the world's largest gas field. which Qatar shares with Iran, which calls its share South Pars.