Arabic version: الهجمات الإيرانية تعطل صادرات قطر من الغاز الطبيعي المسال، مما يتسبب في خسائر كبيرة في الإيرادات
According to Al Jazeera,
Iranian attacks on Qatar have wiped out 17 percent of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) export capacity, causing an estimated $20 billion in lost annual revenue, according to QatarEnergy’s CEO, Saad al-Kaabi. The strikes damaged two of Qatar’s 14 LNG trains and one of its two gas-to-liquids facilities.
The repairs will sideline 12.8 million tonnes of LNG production per year for three to five years. Al-Kaabi expressed disbelief over the attacks, particularly coming from a neighboring Muslim country during the month of Ramadan. His comments came hours after Iran launched a series of attacks on oil and gas facilities across the Gulf region in response to an Israeli military operation that targeted Iran’s South Pars offshore gasfield.
The situation has escalated tensions in the region, with Gulf neighbors condemning Iran’s actions as violations of international law. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi threatened that Iran would show “ZERO restraint” if its infrastructure were attacked again, emphasizing that any resolution to the conflict must address the damage inflicted on civilian sites.
In light of the attacks, QatarEnergy may have to declare force majeure on long-term LNG contracts with countries including Italy, Belgium, South Korea, and China. Al-Kaabi stated that the company had already declared force majeure on its entire LNG output following earlier strikes on its Ras Laffan production hub. He emphasized the need for hostilities to cease before production can resume.
The damaged units cost about $26 billion to build, and the overall impact of the attacks could set the region’s energy sector back 10 to 20 years. Al-Kaabi urged all nations to stay away from oil and gas facilities, highlighting the global implications of such conflicts.
