Doha, Qatar — QatarEnergy announced on Tuesday that it has awarded a major contract worth approximately $10 billion to a joint venture between Technip Energies and Consolidated Contractors Company.
The contract is for the engineering, procurement, and construction of the North Field South (NFS) project, which involves the construction of two large liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains with a combined capacity of 16 million tons per year.
Technip Energies holds the majority of the capital in the joint venture, while Consolidated Contractors Company is a renowned global engineering and construction firm.
The NFS project, along with the expansion of North Field East (NFE), is part of the broader North Field Expansion initiative, aiming to increase Qatar’s total LNG production from 77 million tons to 126 million tons per year. The North Field is home to the world’s largest natural gas reserves and extends into Iranian territory under the Gulf.
QatarEnergy holds a 75 percent interest in the NFS project and has already secured partnership agreements with industry leaders such as TotalEnergies, Shell, and ConocoPhillips for the remaining 25 percent. Qatar’s Energy Minister, Saad Sherida al-Kaabi, who is also the chief of QatarEnergy, hailed this latest deal as a significant milestone in the world’s largest LNG project. He emphasized the project’s commitment to carbon capture and storage (CCS) to minimize its carbon footprint, including the establishment of one of the largest CO2 capture and sequestration facilities.
QatarEnergy aims to achieve over 11 million tons per annum (MTPA) of CO2 capture and sequestration by 2035. Technip estimates that the CCS facility will result in a more than 25 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to similar LNG facilities.
Qatar’s natural gas industry has experienced a boom, with Asian countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea traditionally being the main consumers.
However, European countries have increasingly turned to Qatar for their gas needs due to concerns over Russian supplies amid the conflict in Ukraine. In recent months, Qatar has secured major deals to supply liquefied natural gas to Germany and China, further solidifying its position as one of the world’s top LNG producers.
The North Field, estimated to hold about 10 percent of the world’s known natural gas reserves, has played a crucial role in Qatar’s economic prosperity, transforming it into one of the wealthiest nations globally.