Sinopec takes 5% stake in Qatar’s $29bn LNG project

QatarEnergy

China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec) will acquire part of the $28.8 billion North Field East (NFE) expansion project, said state-owned QatarEnergy,

The state-run Chinese company will take a five percent stake in the equivalent of one North Field East LNG train with a capacity of eight million tonnes per year, Qatar’s oil major said in a statement.

The agreement marks the entry of Sinopec as a shareholder in one of the NFE joint venture companies, which owns the LNG project.

Saad Al-Kaabi, president and CEO of QatarEnergy, said: “China is a major driver of the global energy markets, as well as being one of the most important gas markets in the world and is a key market for Qatari energy products.”

Ma Yongsheng, chairman of Sinopec, added that the cooperation with QatarEnergy will help Sinopec further optimise China’s energy consumption structure and enhance the security, stability, and reliability of clean energy supply.

The statement added that the agreement will not affect the participating interests of any of the other shareholders.

The agreement is the first after last year’s series of partnership announcements in the NFE project, which will raise Qatar’s LNG export capacity from 77 million tons per annum (MTPA) to 110 MTPA.

Last November, Sinopec signed a deal in which QatarEnergy agreed to supply 4 million tonnes of LNG annually for 27 years – the longest LNG contract signed by Qatar.

QatarEnergy has announced plans to retain a 75 percent stake in the North Field expansion, which will cost at least $30 billion and includes constructing liquefaction export facilities.