His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President and CEO of QatarEnergy, has announced that the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) train from the North Field East development is expected to come online in mid-2026, with additional trains to follow shortly after.
Speaking at a leadership dialogue during the World Gas Conference (WGC) in Beijing, Minister Al-Kaabi emphasised the vital role of fuel in driving global economic growth.
He stated: “Gas is the best source for fuel—reliable, affordable, and available to most countries.”
He said while a diverse energy mix is necessary, gas will remain the backbone of economic growth for the next century.
Minister Al-Kaabi noted that each country will have a unique energy mix influenced by variable factors such as solar availability and wind conditions.
“For us in Qatar, we have plenty of sunshine.
“Currently, we meet 15 per cent of our electricity demand from solar power, and we aim to double that to 30 per cent,” he added.
Addressing the challenge of achieving net-zero emissions, Al-Kaabi remarked that many countries and companies are reassessing their commitments, recognising the complexities involved in reaching net-zero by 2050 without a comprehensive plan.
He said: “The State of Qatar and QatarEnergy have been clear that we cannot meet net-zero targets without considering our energy and economic growth needs.”
On the progress of Qatar’s North Field expansion, the Minister highlighted that the first LNG train will have a production capacity of 32 million tonnes per annum.
He mentioned that the North Field West project is currently in the engineering phase and will enter construction in 2027.
Overall, Qatar aims to more than double its LNG production from 77 million tonnes to 160 million tonnes, including output from the Golden Pass project in Texas, set to commence later this year.
“QatarEnergy will be the largest single LNG exporter globally, while Qatar will remain the second-largest LNG exporter after the United States for the foreseeable future,” Minister Al-Kaabi said.
In addition, QatarEnergy is expanding its production capacity across the petrochemical sector, with plans to construct the world’s largest ethane cracker in the United States and the largest ethane cracker in the MENA region, both expected to commence production in early 2027.
“These projects represent the largest single investment by one company in collaboration with our partners at CPChem,” he said.
Regarding Qatar’s relationship with China, Al-Kaabi acknowledged the country’s rapid growth and commitment to a balanced energy mix.
He said: “China is our biggest buyer of LNG and a key partner in our NFE and NFS expansions.
“We are also building a significant number of ships in China as part of our historic LNG shipbuilding programme.”
