Qatar Petroleum signs $19bn LNG carrier agreement with South Korean yards

Qatar Petroleum has announced the second batch of agreements for its massive LNG carrier newbuilding programme. The company has entered into agreements with three major South Korean yards to reserve slots for the construction of more than 100 LNG carriers.

Under the agreements, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) will reserve a major portion of their LNG ship construction capacity for Qatar Petroleum through to 2027.

It is the largest shipbuilding agreement in history, with a total value of over QR70bn ($19.2bn).

“We have secured approximately 60% of the global LNG shipbuilding capacity through 2027 to cater for our LNG carrier fleet requirements in the next 7-8 years, which could reach 100+ new vessels with a program value in excess of 70 billion Qatari Riyals,” said Saad al-Kaabi, QP’s chief executive and Qatar’s energy minister.

According to Al-Kaabi, the new LNG vessels will be equipped with the latest generation slow speed dual-fuel engines, utilising LNG as a fuel.

Qatar Petroleum is now moving full steam ahead with its North Field expansion projects to raise Qatar’s LNG production capacity from 77m today to 126m tons per annum by 2027.

In April, Qatar Petroleum reserved slots at China’s Hudong Zhonghua Shipbuilding for the construction of sixteen 174,000 cu m LNG carriers.