World’s Biggest GTL Plant on Tap for Qatar

8 July 2004

Channel NewsAsia. State-run Qatar Petroleum (QP) and Royal Dutch/Shell Thursday sealed a five- to six-billion-dollar deal to build the world’s biggest plant to convert natural gas into liquid fuels.

The accord, which follows a heads of agreement inked last October, envisages the construction of a gas-to-liquid (GTL) plant at Ras Laffan in the Gulf desert emirate to produce naphtha and environmentally friendly diesel fuels. Gas-rich Qatar has a series of GTL mega-projects in the pipeline with oil majors, who also include Exxon Mobil, Marathon, ConocoPhillips and Sasol-Chevron.

GTL technology is relatively untested, but energy companies are hopeful that the new fuels it produces could become increasingly popular as demand grows for less polluting diesel vehicle engines.

...output of 70,000 barrels per day is targeted by 2009, rising to 140,000 bpd by 2011.

In March, QP signed a six-billion-dollar memorandum of understanding with Sasol-Chevron for three GTL projects.

Last October, QP signed a heads of agreement for a 25-year term with Exxon Mobil to supply the growing US domestic market.