Today, Wednesday, Qatar reached the largest and longest contract to supply gas to Europe, providing France with 3.5 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas annually for 27 years from a major expansion project.

Qatar Energy Company said in a statement – today Wednesday – that its subsidiary and another company affiliated with Total Energies have signed two long-term sales and purchase agreements to supply gas to the Fos Cavaou liquefied natural gas terminal in southern France. With… 27 years from 2026.

In a statement from the company, the volumes of liquefied natural gas will be supplied by two joint ventures (Qatar Energy) and (Total Energy), which hold stakes in the North East Field and North South Field expansion projects.

Total Energies is a shareholder in the North Field LNG expansion projects, with a 6.25% stake in the Northeast Field Project and a 9.375% stake in the South North Field Project.

Saad Al-Kaabi, Qatar Minister of State for Energy Affairs and CEO of Qatar Energy, said: “The signing of these two new contracts with our partner (Total Energy) confirms our continued commitment to the European markets in general. Especially the French market, and thereby contributing to the security of France’s… energy.

Qatar is the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas, and competition for liquefied natural gas has intensified since the start of the war in Ukraine, especially as Europe needs large volumes to replace gas coming from Russian pipelines. Approximately 40% of the continent’s imports.

The first European supply agreement from the Qatar expansion project was signed in November 2022, to supply Germany with around two million tonnes annually for at least 15 years.

More stuff

As part of the Qatari North Field expansion, Qatar plans to increase its liquefied natural gas production by 60% or more to 126 million tons annually by 2027. This month, it laid the foundation stone for the field expansion project.

British “Shell”, Italian “Eni” and “ExxonMobil” signed agreements to participate in the expansion of Qatar fields.

Patrick Bouyenne, president of Total Energy, told reporters during the groundbreaking ceremony that the North Field expansion was a “major project” and that demand for liquefied natural gas from Europe was increasing in light of sanctions imposed on Russia. For its war on Ukraine.

He continued, “We need more products. This is clear. The market is still weak,” adding, “This project is big and will add space to the market.”

Asian countries, led by China, Japan and South Korea, are the main markets for Qatari gas.

Qatar’s deal with Total is the third such deal in the liquefied gas sector, similar to those reached with China National Petroleum Corporation and China’s Sinopec.