Satyendra Pathak
Doha
QatarEnergy on Sunday announced that it has selected ConocoPhillips as its third and final international partner in the North Field South (NFS) expansion project, granting it a 6.25 percent stake. The NFS expansion project comprises two LNG mega trains with a combined capacity of 16 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).
The partnership agreement was signed by the Minister of State for Energy Affairs and QatarEnergy President and CEO HE Saad Sherida Al Kaabi and ConocoPhillips Chairman and CEO Ryan Lance in Doha.
Pursuant to the agreement, ConocoPhillips will have an effective net participating interest of 6.25 percent in the NFS project, out of a 25 percent interest available for international partners. QatarEnergy will hold the remaining 75 percent interest.
State-owned QatarEnergy had already announced Shell and TotalEnergies as partners in the NFS expansion and Kaabi said each would hold a 9.375 stake.
Speaking on the occasion, Kaabi said, "QatarEnergy and its partners continue their efforts to supply an additional volume of about 65 million tonnes of LNG annually, from its North Field Expansion Projects and the Golden Pass LNG Project to the global market to meet the growing demand for cleaner, low-carbon energy, and to enhance the energy security of customers around the world.”
Kaabi said, "As we have previously emphasised, LNG produced from the North Field expansion projects will have the lowest carbon emission levels in the world, thanks to the deployment of a number of technologies, including extensive use of carbon capture and sequestration technologies. This will enable our LNG to play an important role in supporting a pragmatic, equitable, and realistic energy transition.”
The North Field Expansion Projects, comprising NFS and the North Field East (NFE) expansion projects, is the industry’s largest ever LNG project. It will start production in 2026 and will add more than 48 MTPA to the world’s LNG supplies, and raise Qatar’s LNG production capacity to 126 MTPA.
This unique project is characterised by the highest health, safety, and environmental standards, including carbon capture and sequestration, to reduce the project’s overall carbon footprint to the lowest levels possible.
Replying to a question during a Q&A session on the occasion, Kaabi said that QatarEnergy was in talks with the Lebanese government to take a 30 percent stake in an offshore exploration block and is also negotiating with TotalEnergies and ENI on this matter.