Iran strikes took out 17% LNG export capacity for 3-5 yrs: QatarEnergy CEO

Missile strikes damaged key LNG facilities in Qatar, triggering fires and disrupting exports. QatarEnergy says repairs could take up to five years, impacting global gas supplies

Iranian attacks have damaged infrastructure accounting for about 17 per cent of Qatar’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export capacity, with repairs expected to take three to five years, QatarEnergy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Saad al-Kaabi told Reuters on Thursday. He added that the company could be forced to declare force majeure on long-term contracts with some countries for several years.

 

Earlier in the day, QatarEnergy said multiple LNG facilities were hit in missile strikes in the early hours, causing “sizeable fires” and significant damage.

How much LNG capacity has been hit by the strikes?

In the interview, al-Kaabi said the disruption could result in a loss of around 12.8 million tonnes of LNG output annually over the next three to five years, which is equivalent to roughly 17 per cent of Qatar’s export capacity.

 

 

“I never in my wildest dreams would have thought Qatar would be, Qatar and the region, in such an attack, especially from a brotherly Muslim country in the month of Ramadan, attacking us in this way,” he told Reuters.

What is the impact on other energy exports?

The fallout extends beyond LNG exports. Al-Kaabi said condensate shipments could decline by about 24 per cent, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by 13 per cent, while naphtha and sulphur may each drop by 6 per cent. Helium exports are also expected to fall by 14 per cent.

 

He said QatarEnergy may need to invoke force majeure on long-term LNG supply agreements for up to five years, potentially affecting deliveries to Italy, Belgium, South Korea, and China, according to Reuters.

When can production resume at Qatar’s LNG facilities?

Al-Kaabi added that production could resume only after the security situation stabilises. “For production to restart, first we need hostilities to cease,” he said, noting that the facilities, built at a cost of about $26 billion, “should not be attacked.”

 

He further said two of Qatar’s 14 LNG trains and one of its two gas-to-liquids (GTL) facilities were damaged in the strikes. US energy major ExxonMobil is a partner in the affected units, with a 34 per cent stake in LNG Train S4 and 30 per cent in Train S6. QatarEnergy holds the remaining stake.

 

QatarEnergy had earlier declared force majeure on its entire LNG output following attacks on its Ras Laffan production hub.