Qatar signs world’s ‘longest’ gas supply deal with China – Gulf Today

Qatar signs world’s ‘longest’ gas supply deal with China – Gulf Today

QatarEnergy CEO and Qatar’s Minister of Energy Saad al Kaabi attends a signing ceremony with Sinopec, in Doha, Qatar, November 21, 2022. Reuters

QatarEnergy announced a 27-year natural gas supply deal with China Monday, calling it the “longest” ever seen as it strengthened ties with Asia while Europe scrambles for alternative sources.

The state energy company will send four million tonnes of liquefied natural gas annually from its new North Field East project to China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), it said.

The deal “marks the longest gas supply agreement in the history of the LNG industry”, said Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, Qatar’s energy minister and QatarEnergy’s chief executive.

Asian countries led by China, Japan and South Korea are the main market for Qatar’s gas, which is increasingly being sought by European countries since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Negotiations with European countries have struggled as Germany and others baulked at signing