Qatar has placed an order with a Chinese shipbuilder for four new tankers to transport liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Qatar wants to respond to the strong demand for its natural gas. The Gulf State is the world’s largest exporter of LNG.
The order from state-owned Qatar Petroleum has a value of EUR 655 million. Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group is building the four LNG tankers. It is the first time that Qatar Petroleum has built LNG tankers in China. Qatar is in the process of greatly increasing the production of gas and is earmarking tens of billions for this.
The demand for LNG is expected to increase strongly in the coming years as countries switch to gas and say goodbye to more polluting fossil fuels such as oil and coal. In Europe, gas prices have risen to records.
Qatar’s energy minister recently said that the demand for gas is enormous and cannot always be met. With the help of the new ships, more gas must be supplied to customers.