Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Aug 29, 2025

China signs 27-year gas deal with QatarEnergy to secure supply

China signs 27-year gas deal with QatarEnergy to secure supply

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, competition for LNG has become intense with nations trying to replace Russian supply.

QatarEnergy has signed a 27-year deal to supply China’s Sinopec with liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the longest such agreement to date, as volatility drives buyers to seek long-term supplies.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, competition for LNG has become intense, with Europe, in particular, needing vast amounts to help replace Russian pipeline gas that used to make up almost 40 percent of the continent’s imports.

European companies looking to buy LNG needed to look at how Asian buyers were approaching their own negotiations and were willing to lock into long-term deals, QatarEnergy chief Saad al-Kaabi told the Reuters news agency shortly before signing the Sinopec deal.

“Today is an important milestone for the first sales and purchase agreement (SPA) for North Field East project, it is 4 million tonnes for 27 years to Sinopec of China,” al-Kaabi said.

“It signifies long-term deals are here and important for both seller and buyer,” he said in an interview in Doha, adding that the deal was the LNG sector’s largest single sales and purchase agreement on record.

The North Field is part of the world’s biggest gas field that Qatar shares with Iran, which calls its share South Pars.

QatarEnergy earlier this year signed five deals for North Field East (NFE), the first and larger of the two-phase North Field expansion plan, which includes six LNG trains that will ramp up Qatar’s liquefaction capacity to 126 million tonnes per year by 2027 from 77 million.

It later signed contracts with three partners for North Field South (NFS), the second phase of the expansion.

Monday’s deal, confirmed by Sinopec, is the first supply deal to be announced for NFE.

“This takes our relationship to new heights as we have an SPA that will last into the 2050s,” al-Kaabi said.

“It sends a message that a lot of Asian buyers are actually approaching us to have a long-term deal because they see the volumes of gas that are coming in the future are less and less.”


Long-term supply


al-Kaabi said negotiations with other buyers in China and Europe who want to have supply security were ongoing.

Qatar is already the world’s top LNG exporter, and its North Field expansion project will boost that position and help guarantee long-term supplies of gas to Europe as the continent seeks alternatives to Russian flows.

“The recent volatility has driven buyers to understand the importance of having long-term supply that is fixed and that’s reasonably priced for the long term,” al-Kaabi said.

“There aren’t many projects that are taking final investment decision and the next two big chunks of LNG capacity that are coming into the market is Golden Pass LNG that we partnered with ExxonMobil in Texas and the next big chunk if you will is North Field East and North Field South.”

al-Kaabi also said there was more realisation globally that gas should be an essential part of any energy transition.

“The wind doesn’t blow all the time and the sun doesn’t shine all the time,” he said, adding that Qatari LNG is “a solution that has the least carbon intensity”.

The pricing of the Sinopec deal will be similar to others in the past that were linked to crude oil.

“The way we’re pricing our deals with Asia is crude linked. We’ve done it this way in the past and that’s the mechanism we’re using going forward.”

The deal was signed on an ex-ship basis, meaning QatarEnergy will provide the shipping and delivery of the LNG.

al-Kaabi added negotiations for an equity stake in the Gulf country’s expansion project were ongoing with several entities.

The supply contract is a key component for an integrated partnership in the NFE, Sinopec said in a statement, indicating it could be involved in stake negotiations.

QatarEnergy has maintained a 75 percent stake overall in the expansion and could give up to a 5 percent stake from its holding to some buyers, al-Kaabi said.

“Important buyers that want to commit for the long term on a substantial volume want to see part of the benefits of the upstream business … so I think it’s an important win if you will and it makes the partnership even more solid.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
×