Qatar crisis not to affect LNG exports to India, China

The Dollar Business Bureau

With the recent crisis in Qatar of boycotting Doha by four Arab nations, liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports from the country to the Asian countries including India, China, Japan and South Korea, have not to be impacted, said a Qatari official.

“Exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India, Japan, China and South Korea have not been affected by the boycott of Qatar by four Arab states, said Qatar’s Energy Minister Mohammed al-Sada on Monday.

The Minister said that the exports from Qatar to the four Asian nations make up for around three-fourth of the country's overall exports.

Qatar’s exports to the Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates account for only 8%, al-Sada said in a statement.

“Qatar remains committed to all its agreements with its partners and is determined to maintain this status despite the illegal and unjust embargo imposed on it,” said the statement, while referring to the exports of LNG.

Last month, four Arab nations - the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain - have severed diplomatic relations with Doha over its alleged support terrorism activities.

Qatar is one of the world’s largest producers and suppliers of natural gas. The country’s proven reserves of natural gas stand at around 25 trillion cubic meters. It also holds nearly 14% of world’s third-largest natural gas reserves, after Russia and Iran. 

India has signed long-term contracts to import natural gas from Doha. Petronet LNG, the India’s largest LNG importer, has signed a contract to ship 8.5 million tonnes of LNG from Qatar every year.