Qatar Petroleum takes FID on North Field mega-project

The US$28.75Bn project, one of the energy industry’s largest investments in the past few years and the largest LNG project going, is expected to raise the Gulf nation’s LNG production capacity from 77M tonnes a year (mta) to 110 mta.

The decision to proceed with the investment was announced at a signing ceremony held to celebrate the execution of the project’s key onshore engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract. The main scope of the EPC contract is the construction of 4 mega LNG trains with a capacity of 8M tonnes each, with associated facilities for gas treatment, natural gas liquids recovery, as well as helium extraction and refining within Ras Laffan Industrial City.

Qatar Petroluem chief executive Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi said “This project will generate substantial revenues for the state of Qatar and will have significant benefits to all sectors of the Qatari economy during the construction phase and beyond.”

“One of the most important environmental elements of the NFE project is its CO₂ capture and sequestration (CCS) system that will be integrated with our wider CCS scheme in Ras Laffan, which – once fully operational – will be the largest of its kind in terms of capacity in the LNG industry, and will be one of the largest ever developed anywhere in the world,” he added.

The North Field East Project marks the first phase of Qatar’s LNG expansion plans and in addition to LNG, the project will produce condensate, LPG, ethane, sulphur and helium. Production is set to begin in Q4 2025.

A second phase of the project – North Field South project (NFS) – is estimated to further boost the LNG production capacity of the country from 110 mta to 126 mta. NFS will feature two new LNG trains with a capacity of 8 mta each and is expected to begin production in 2027.

Qatar Petroleum is evaluating further LNG capacity expansion beyond 126 mta.