Qatar Petroleum has moved to solidify its position in the northwest European LNG market. The firm this week signed a deal with Fluxys Belgium under which it will “subscribe to the full capacity” of the 6.6mn t/y Zeebrugge LNG terminal from “the expiry of the existing long-term unloading contracts and up to 2044.” Under a current deal, “approximately 50% of the terminal’s capacity is utilized for delivery of Qatari LNG into Belgium under long-term LNG agreements.”
Qatar is the dominant LNG supplier to Belgium, providing it with 1.55mn t/y out of a total 1.90mn tons imported last year. Belgium’s minister of energy Marie Christine Marghem said at the signing ceremony in Brussels on 2 September that “approximately 15% of our gas consumption comes from Qatar” as she praised bilateral relations between the two states. (CONTINUED - 283 WORDS)
