QatarEnergy LNG force majeure hits more cargoes, says energy partner

More than two months after the US and Israel began a war in Iran, the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer has notified a Euorpean partner of further war-related disruption to LNG supplies.

Italy’s Edison, a division of French energy group EDF, said an "update of ongoing force majeure affecting LNG supplies delivered to its Adriatic LNG terminal" from QatarEnergy had led to revised estimates for overall delivery on the long-term offtake agreement it has with QatarEnergy.

"Based on the information currently received from the seller [QatarEnergy], Edison considers a reduction in future deliveries from QatarEnergy estimated at around one-third of the annual contracted volumes before taking into account any potential mitigation actions," a statement from Edison said.

Edison reported that, up to March 2026, it had received 25% of its total annual contracted LNG volume from QatarEnergy, or 1.6Bn m³ out of the 6.4Bn m³ contracted annually over the 25-year lifespan of the sale and purchase agreement between the companies.

Edison also said the overall reduction in LNG volumes, and the timing of deliveries, would depend "in particular on the evolution of regional conflicts".

Since QatarEnergy initially declared force majeure on 20 March, 2026, Edison has lost a dozen LNG cargoes from QatarEnergy, though the company said it has replaced eight of the 12 lost, to date, and "does not expect any impact on its end customers".

QatarEnergy has not publicly commented on the extended disruption notice to Edison.

Force majeure background and analyst estimates on resumption of production at Ras Laffan

Missile attacks launched by Iran more than two weeks into the war in mid-March damaged two LNG-producing trains at the world’s largest LNG export facility, Ras Laffan, curtailing 12.8M tonnes per annum (mta) of production, or approximately 17% of Qatar’s LNG exports.

Declaring ’long-term’ force majeure at the time, QatarEnergy estimated damage to its Ras Laffan LNG export facility will cost US$20Bn in lost revenue and take up to five years to repair.

Analysis by Rystad Energy in late March 2026 pointed to inherent fragility in the manufacturing supply chain for LNG terminal components as a key consideration for estimating the extent of cost and supply disruption energy markets are likely to face from war-damaged energy infrastructure in the Middle East.

Rystad’s conclusion at the time was that ’capital alone will not be sufficient’ to bring Qatar LNG’s damaged Ras Laffan facilities back online.

Estimates from analysts at market intelligence firm Rystad Energy highlighted the complexity of repairs and restoration for the energy facilities damaged or destroyed by strikes in the ongoing war between allies the US and Israel, and Iran.

Rystad put the cost for energy infrastructure and repair at "at least US$25Bn". 

The lion’s share of the cost and time to repair is taken up by damage and shutdowns affecting liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains at Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City, the Rystad assessment said. 

Rystad analysts said the timeline is dictated by integral parts needed for repair that are made in a limited number of specialist facilities that all have long lead times for fabrication.

While acknowledging the immediate impacts of the ongoing Strait of Hormuz closure, Rystad Energy head of supply chain research Audun Martinesen pointed to the long-term potential setbacks from the damaged facilities.

"Every day of damaged or shut-in infrastructure pushes [the return to] prewar production capacity further out of reach," he said, noting that, with urgent repairs likely taking precedence above other initiatives, the impacts from the damage to facilities at Ras Laffan are likely to hamper Qatar’s expansion plans, longer-term.