QatarEnergy's new Louisiana LNG contract adds a long-term U.S. supply stream to its portfolio, while Italy's Edison works to cover additional cargoes suspended through December under the Qatari producer's force majeure.
The companies announced the 20-year agreement Oct. 29. Woodside Energy will supply up to three million tonnes of liquefied natural gas a year. A filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission says shipments will begin when Louisiana LNG's second train starts operating and rise to three million tonnes a year when its third train is running. QatarEnergy said deliveries are expected to start in 2030.
The project, under construction near Lake Charles, Louisiana, is planned to have annual capacity of 16.5 million tonnes across three trains. Woodside targets first LNG production in 2029. Because deliveries under the QatarEnergy contract are not expected until 2030, the deal cannot cover cargoes suspended through December this year.
Edison said QatarEnergy's force majeure will prevent three additional cargoes scheduled for Italy from being delivered through the end of December. The utility said 38 cargoes were subject to force majeure for the period from early April through the end of December, representing about 5 billion cubic meters of gas. As of Oct. 27, Edison had replaced 27 cargoes, or about 2.7 billion cubic meters, and said it could continue sourcing gas for customers and meet its commitments.
QatarEnergy describes its U.S. purchases as part of a long-term growth and portfolio diversification strategy. Woodside says the agreement provides revenue certainty for a material portion of Louisiana LNG's production. Separately, Qatar's Minister of State for Energy Affairs Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi said Iranian attacks damaged two of the country's 14 LNG processing units, disrupting 17% of export capacity, or 12.8 million tonnes a year.
The deal follows QatarEnergy's Oct. 22 agreements with Cheniere for four million tonnes a year, with deliveries scheduled to begin in the early 2030s. The Woodside and Cheniere announcements together represent up to seven million tonnes of annual U.S. LNG purchases. Cheniere said one million tonnes a year from Sabine Pass depends on a positive final investment decision for the first phase of its Sabine Pass Expansion Project.
