With a value of 11 billion riyals .. Qatar Petroleum signed a contract to build the largest gas tanker fleet in the history of this industry

Imad Murad - Doha

As part of a program aimed at building the largest LNG tanker fleet of its kind in the history of this industry, Qatar Petroleum has signed a contract to reserve capacity to build a number of tankers in China, to be part of the requirements of the tanker fleet needed to support LNG production projects, including field expansion projects North. 

The fleet will contribute to meeting the requirements of shipping LNG from Qatar’s domestic and international projects, and replacing some of the existing Qatar Fleet tankers, in addition to absorbing the expected big increase in North Field production from 77 million tons annually to 126 million tons in 2027. 

The contract signed with the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group Limited, wholly owned by the China National Shipbuilding Corporation Limited; provides for the reservation of a large share of the construction capacity of the gas tankers in the company’s shipyards for Qatar Petroleum until the end of 2027. 

Expansion and increased production
Experts in the field of oil and gas believe that the new Qatari move is in line with its plan to increase production and cover future expansion, by relying entirely on its company, Nakilat, to distribute liquefied gas to all consumers around the world.  

The Qatari Minister of State for Energy Affairs, Saad bin Sharida Al-Kaabi, believes that this step confirms his country's commitment to its international reputation as a safe and reliable energy resource that can be relied upon at all times, and under all circumstances, considering that signing this contract goes another way on the right path to ensure that the future requirements of the fleet are met LNG tankers on time to support increased production capacity. 

Al-Kaabi adds that the value of this agreement amounts to more than 11 billion Qatari riyals (about three billion US dollars), as this depends on the nature of the requirements and the extent of the expansion of the Chinese shipbuilding capacity, pointing out that this contract fulfills the common desire between the two countries to enhance Their relations in all fields. 

The LNG tanker - which has a capacity of 174,000 cubic meters, which will be built for the benefit of Qatar Petroleum - is the latest generation of LNG tanker designs, and the tanker has a world-leading performance in terms of efficiency, reliability and environmental protection. 

And oil affairs analyst Mohamed Yaqoub Al-Sayed considered in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net that increasing the Qatari LNG production from 77 million tons annually to 126 million tons is the first motivation for taking this step, noting that the increase of tankers comes within the broader plan approved by Qatar to expand production previously. . 

Early preparedness
The expert in the field of oil and gas, Tariq Al-Sheikh, agreed with Al-Sayed that Qatar Petroleum's step is in line with the aspirations of the State of Qatar in the field of gas, noting that this step coincides with the expansion of gas production in Qatar, which is an early alert to add new tankers to the Qatar fleet For future gas. 

The Sheikh pointed out in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net that the significance of the location of building these tankers, explaining that China has a plan to be the largest consumer of clean energy in the world, therefore Qatar has sought to be present and strongly in this future market, as the largest source of liquefied gas in the world. 

The Sheikh adds that Qatar with this step wants to send a message stating that it will maintain its leadership of the gas export market in the world as the largest exporter and distributor of liquefied gas, in addition to reassuring the global market that the largest exporters are proceeding with its expansion plans despite the events taking place in the world currently, whether from the effects of a virus Corona, or a significant drop in oil prices. 

Marine tankers
Muhammad Yaqoub Al-Sayed expected the success of the Qatari move, whether in expanding production, or owning new tankers, as liquefied gas is a clean fuel, and many new factories and industrial facilities in the world have started to rely entirely on gas, and the situation in China, South Korea and Japan Demonstrate that. 

Al Sayed said that the only way for Qatar to export liquefied gas is marine tankers, because it cannot extend pipelines for geographical reasons, the most important of which is the distance with consumers, so it depends on liquefaction in order to deliver gas to the consumer, stressing that increasing Qatar's production of Liquefied gas is due to its study of the world's current consumption and the volume of future consumption. Therefore, this plan was developed to be in line with increasing consumption. 

On the impact of the collapse of oil prices on the Qatari move, Al-Sayed ruled out any impact of what is currently happening on Qatari plans, explaining that what Qatar is currently doing is a long-term step that extends for years and is not affected by the prices and intraday fluctuations in oil prices.