Qatar on Sunday signed a $6-7 billion deal with Royal Dutch/Shell to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) to North America and Europe, shortly after Qatar's Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani laid the foundation stone for the $12.8bn Qatargas II Project to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the United Kingdom.
The agreement was signed by Qatar Minister of Energy and Industry Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah and Jeroen van der Veer, chief executive of the Royal Dutch/Shell group of companies. The minister chairs the state-run Qatar Petroleum (QP) which will own a 70-percent stake in the deal.
With more than $7.6bn in international financing in place, Qatargas II involves the delivery of 15.6 million tonnes annually (MTA) of LNG to the UK for 25 years, with the first delivery expected in winter 2007/08. The multi-billion financing for the project was raised from 57 different institutions, including Islamic financial institutions, making it the world’s single largest energy financing ever.
The deal between Qatar and Shell was signed on the eve of a Doha gas conference opening Monday.
