QatarEnergy has selected oil and gas giant Shell as its fifth and last partner in the North Field East (NFE) expansion project, which is valued at $28.75bn.
The partnership agreement was signed in a ceremony at QatarEnergy’s headquarters in Doha, by HE Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, and Ben van Beurden, in the presence of senior executives from both companies.
In June 2022, QatarEnergy had announced partnership agreements with TotalEnergies, Eni, ConocoPhillips, and ExxonMobil for the NFE expansion project.
Under the terms of the agreement, QatarEnergy and Shell will become partners in a new joint venture company (JV), in which QatarEnergy will hold a 75% interest while Shell will hold the remaining 25% interest. In turn, the JV will own 25% of the entire NFE project, which includes 4 mega LNG trains with a combined nameplate LNG capacity of 32 million tons per annum (MTPA).
In remarks at the signing ceremony, HE Al-Kaabi said: “We are very pleased to have Shell join us as a partner in this mega project, to which we have committed ourselves. We have lived up to that commitment, as well as to our global reputation as a reliable and trustworthy energy provider.
“Today’s announcement marks the successful conclusion of the selection of our international energy company partners in the North Field East project, through which QatarEnergy and its partners reaffirm their commitment to the energy transition and to the safe and reliable supply of cleaner energy to the world.”
HE Al-Kaabi added: “We value our long and fruitful relations and strategic partnership with Shell, not just within the State of Qatar, but in many other locations around the world. And, as one of the largest players in the LNG business, they have a lot to bring to help meet global energy demand and security.”
The minister thanked the teams working from QatarEnergy and Shell, as well as the management and working teams of Qatargas, and concluded his remarks by saying: “We are always indebted to the wise leadership of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and to His continued guidance and support of the energy sector.”
Shell selected as fifth and last partner for NFE expansion
On his part, Beurden said: “I am honoured that Shell has been selected by QatarEnergy as a partner in the NFE project. Through its pioneering integration with carbon capture and storage, this landmark project will help provide LNG the world urgently needs at a lower carbon footprint. This agreement deepens our strategic partnership with QatarEnergy which includes multiple international partnerships such as the world-class Pearl GTL asset.”
“We are committed to maximising the value of the LNG expansion for the State of Qatar and continue to be a trusted, reliable and long-term partner in Qatar’s continued progress,” Mr. van Beurden concluded.
More about the North Field East expansion project
This agreement is the fifth and last in a series of partnership announcements in the $28.75 billion NFE project, which will raise Qatar’s LNG export capacity from the current 77 MTPA to 110 MTPA.
In a series of announcements from June 2022, QatarEnergy revealed partnership agreements with four global oil giants for the NFE project: TotalEnergies, Eni, ConocoPhillips, and ExxonMobil.
TotalEnergies and ExxonMobil will each own a 6.25% stake in the north field east project, while Eni and ConocoPhillips own around 3.12% each.
The project’s first phase includes four liquefaction and purification facilities or LNG trains, while the fifth and sixth trains are part of the second phase. Previous contracts awarded for the north field east project also include engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) and front-end engineering and design (FEED) works.