Qatar LNG capacity cut 17% after Ras Laffan attack, losses may reach $20bn annually

DOHA — Qatar said Thursday that Iranian missile strikes on Ras Laffan Industrial City have reduced the country’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export capacity by 17%, with estimated annual losses of around $20 billion and repair timelines of up to five years.State-owned QatarEnergy said the damage resulted from missile attacks on Wednesday and early Thursday, impacting supplies to key markets in Europe and Asia.Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs and QatarEnergy CEO Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi confirmed that no injuries were reported, describing the strikes as “unjustified and senseless” and warning they pose a threat to global energy security.The company said LNG Trains 4 and 6 — with a combined capacity of 12.8 million metric tons per year — were damaged, accounting for roughly 17% of Qatar’s total LNG exports.Train 4 is jointly owned by QatarEnergy (66%) and ExxonMobil (34%), while Train 6 is owned by QatarEnergy (70%) and ExxonMobil (30%).Al-Kaabi said repairs could take between three to five years, forcing QatarEnergy to declare long-term force majeure on some LNG contracts.“The impact is on China, South Korea, Italy and Belgium,” he said, noting that supply disruptions could last up to five years.The attacks also hit the Pearl GTL facility operated by Shell, with one of its production trains expected to remain offline for at least a year.QatarEnergy warned of additional losses in related products, including 18.6 million barrels of condensates (24% of exports), 1.281 million tons of liquefied petroleum gas (13%), and 0.594 million tons of naphtha (6%).It also projected losses of 0.18 million tons of sulfur and 309.54 MCFA of helium, representing about 6% and 14% of exports respectively.The developments come amid escalating regional tensions following the US-Israeli offensive on Iran that began on Feb. 28, with Iran responding through drone and missile attacks across the region.Earlier this month, QatarEnergy had already declared force majeure on LNG shipments after halting production due to Iranian drone strikes.