Qatar LNG

What it is

Qatar LNG refers to the liquefied natural gas production and export complex operated by QatarEnergy from Ras Laffan Industrial City on Qatar's northeast coast. The operating entity is QatarEnergy LNG, a name adopted in 2021 when Qatargas absorbed RasGas and the parent company rebranded from Qatar Petroleum. As of 2024, 14 production trains at Ras Laffan generated combined annual output of 77 million tonnes (MTPA), around 20% of globally traded LNG. The feedstock is the North Field, an offshore reservoir with approximately 900 trillion cubic feet of recoverable reserves, the world's largest non-associated gas field. The North Field straddles Qatar's maritime boundary with Iran; the Iranian side is called South Pars. QatarEnergy holds majority stakes across all trains; international partners include ExxonMobil, Shell, TotalEnergies, ConocoPhillips, Eni, Sinopec, and CNPC.

History

Qatar produced its first LNG cargo in 1996 from Train 1 at the newly built Ras Laffan terminal, marking the country's transformation from a minor oil producer into a gas exporting power. By the mid-2000s Qatar had reached 77 MTPA across 14 trains. In 2005 Qatar imposed a self-moratorium on further North Field development to manage reservoir depletion risk, halting new capacity for twelve years. The moratorium lifted in 2017. In 2019, QatarEnergy announced North Field East (NFE, 32 MTPA) and North Field South (NFS, 16 MTPA) expansion projects; North Field West (NFW, 16 MTPA) followed, setting a combined target of 142 MTPA by 2030. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 accelerated European contract-signing and gave Qatar leverage to negotiate 27-year supply deals with buyers seeking alternatives to Russian pipeline gas.

Current state

As of July 2026, Qatar's nominal capacity is 77 MTPA, but functional output is constrained by two overlapping disruptions. In March 2026, Iranian forces struck Ras Laffan during a broader military exchange tied to the US-Israeli campaign against Iran. Two LNG trains and one gas-to-liquids facility were damaged; QatarEnergy's CEO Saad al-Kaabi said the damage would sideline 12.8 MTPA, roughly 17% of capacity, for three to five years. QatarEnergy declared force majeure on long-term contracts with buyers in Italy, Belgium, South Korea, and China, with estimated lost revenue of US$20 billion per year. On 21 June 2026 a separate explosion at the Barzan gas treatment facility killed 13 workers, injured 66, and left 18 missing, cutting weekly throughput to roughly one-fifth of normal. Qatar's Prime Minister said supply would recover within weeks.

The North Field expansion continues in parallel. NFE Train 1 produced its first LNG in November 2025 and is ramping toward 8 MTPA; Trains 2, 3, and 4 target commercial operations in mid-2026, late 2026, and late 2027 respectively.

Relationships

QatarEnergy holds 75% of the NFE joint venture; ExxonMobil, Shell, TotalEnergies, ConocoPhillips, Eni, Sinopec, and CNPC share the remainder. ExxonMobil holds 34% in Train S4 and 30% in Train S6, the two trains damaged in March 2026, creating direct liability for the US major. Qatar's long-term contracts run predominantly to Asia, with South Korea, Japan, China, India, and Taiwan as the primary buyers; European volumes have grown since 2022. QatarEnergy also holds a 70% stake in the Golden Pass LNG export terminal in Texas, which shipped its first cargo in June 2026, giving Doha a direct presence in the competing US export corridor. The North Field's shared geology with Iran means Qatar and Tehran are both reservoir neighbors and periodic adversaries; the March 2026 attack made that tension literal. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz in early 2026 complicated tanker routing for Qatari cargoes bound for Europe and Asia.

What to watch

• Throughput recovery at Barzan and the formal cause-of-explosion finding.
• Whether the force majeure declarations covering contracts for Italy, Belgium, South Korea, and China widen further as the repair timeline for the two damaged trains firms up.
• NFE Trains 2 through 4 startup schedule; cumulative disruption at Ras Laffan could push commissioning dates.
• How Asian JKM and European TTF prices reflect the Qatar supply gap through winter 2026-27.
• North Field West final investment decision and the longer path to 142 MTPA by 2030.