Germany lines up natural gas deals with Qatar and the UAE as it scrambles to replace Russian supplies

Germany lines up natural gas deals with Qatar and the UAE as it scrambles to replace Russian supplies

Germany is stacking up natural gas deals with Qatar and the UAE as Russia cuts off supply.

It's aiding the shift by releasing $2.5 billion of credit to inject into alternative gas supplies.

"The gas offering is slowly broadening," Germany's economy minister told Reuters.

Germany is closing in on natural gas deals with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as it seeks to replace Russian energy, according to media reports.

To facilitate such deals, the crisis-deep country released $2.5 billion to secure alternative gas supplies before winter hits, Bloomberg reported.

German utilities RWE and Uniper are nearing an agreement on long-term deals to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar's North Field Expansion project, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The talks between Germany and Qatar have been riddled with differences over the length of contracts and pricing, but a settlement is expected to be reached soon, Reuters reported.

Should the deal go through, Qatar would not be able to offer Germany immediate deliveries, as the project is expected to launch in 2026 at the earliest.

"Uniper is currently working hard to diversify its sources of gas supply. Qatar also plays an important role in this," the major utility told Reuters. RWE said it was in