France Fortifies Energy Security with 27-Year LNG Deal

Thursday, 12 October 2023

France has locked in a solution for strengthening their energy security.??

TotalEnergies and QatarEnergy have signed two LNG sale and purchase agreements.??

The contract has secured the supply of up to 3.5 mtpa (million tonnes per annum) of LNG from Qatar to France.??

From 2026, the LNG will be delivered to France via the Fos Cavaou LNG receiving terminal, with a 27-year contract.??

The LNG will be sourced from North Field East (NFE) and North Field South (NFS) in the Persian Gulf.??

‘’These two new agreements we have signed with our partner TotalEnergies, demonstrate our continued commitment to the European markets in general, and to the French market in particular, thus contributing to France’s energy security.??

The State of Qatar has been supplying the French market with LNG since 2009, and the new agreements reflect the joint effort of two trusted partners, QatarEnergy and TotalEnergies, to provide reliable and credible LNG supply solutions to customers across the globe” said Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi. (Qatar’s Minister of State and Energy Affairs, and President and CEO of Qatar Energy)?

At the beginning of October Qatar held official proceedings to mark the commencement of their expansion project of the North Fields.??

This is estimated to more than double the Persian Gulf’s LNG production capacity from 77 mtpa to 126 mtpa by 2026.?

The deal comes at a time when the European gas market has been heavily influenced by geopolitics. ?

This could signal a potential pivot from Asia to Europe in the global LNG landscape. ?

Strategic decisions by Qatari suppliers to change their market supply profile could have a knock-on effect on both LNG suppliers and buyers globally, indicating a potential realignment of LNG supply chains that could impact market dynamics and pricing in Europe. ?