LONDON (Reuters) - Although liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices have fallen because of new supplies, production is on track to rise by 2024, a Bloomberg report said.
Qatar, the world's largest LNG producer, is on track to expand production, the report said, noting that Doha is working to maintain its global leadership, especially as countries such as the United States, Russia and Mozambique are launching their own projects.
Qatar has invited international companies - including Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell - to bid for expansion in its North Field, the world's largest natural gas field, Bloomberg said.
"We are on the right track and by the first quarter of next year we will have concluded all the contracts to start production in 2024," QNA quoted Qatari Energy Minister Saad bin Sharidah al-Kaabi as saying.
Qatar is increasing its LNG production capacity from 77 million tonnes per year to 110 million tonnes starting in 2024, and the move is likely to generate an additional $ 40 billion in export revenue, the report said.
According to Bloomberg, Qatar Petroleum plans to build four new liquefaction plants, which are in negotiations for a possible partnership with major energy companies, and expects all contracts to be valid by the first quarter of next year.
In April, Qatar Petroleum launched a tender for the construction of tankers aimed at further expansion of LNG, according to the same report.
A cleaner alternative
According to Bloomberg, oil producers believe that natural gas is a cleaner alternative to coal needed by industrial facilities to generate electricity and heat in operations such as steel and cement.
Qatari-led LNG producers continue to advance despite falling market prices, the report said.
Spot delivery prices in Asia, home to the largest market on record, rose about 35 percent from a July low, but are still close to the year-low, the report said.
Bloomberg quoted workers in the LNG industry as saying the trade war had not affected the global growth of the market.