Qatar's energy authorities yesterday launched a $13 billion project to expand the facilities for the production of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil Ras Laffan III Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of ExxonMobil, announced the creation of Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company 3 (RL3) during an official ceremony in Doha.
RL3 is another expansion of the present liquefied natural gas facilities operated by RasGas Company at Ras Laffan Industrial City in the north eastern part of Qatar.
The project will bring the total number of trains operated by RasGas to seven and will increase LNG production capacity by more than 40 per cent, the company said. It will cost between $13 and $14 billion, taking the total RasGas Company production to 37 million tones per annum.
The scope of the project will entail the design, construction and operation of two huge LNG trains six and seven, as well as development, production, transport, processing, treatment, liquefaction, storage, delivery and sales of about 15.6 million tones per annum of LNG and its byproducts.
They include liquid petroleum gas (LPG), condensates, natural gas, helium and sulphur.
Abdullah Bin Hamad Al Attiyah, Qatar's second deputy premier and minister of energy, said the project paves the way for the ultimate objective of reaching 77 million tonnes per annum of LNG production by 2010.
