LNG

Kuwait has taken 28 LNG cargoes so far this year, 2.17 million tons on an arrival-date basis to 23 July, and every one of them loaded at Ras Laffan. The last cargo from anywhere else was the LNG Borno out of Bonny Island, which discharged at Al Zour on 31 October 2025. Nothing has berthed at the terminal since 15 July.

The Al Sahla, a 211,842 cbm Q-Flex that went dark near the Strait of Hormuz on 25 May, did not complete its transit. It was previously widely reported as heading to China with arrival on 14 June. LNG Journal's vessel tracking data shows the vessel is currently en route to Kuwait’s Al Zour terminal.

Qatar has signed a new long-term sale and purchase agreement with Royal Dutch Shell to deliver 1 million tonnes per annum of liquefied natural gas to the neighbouring Gulf state of  Kuwait starting in 2020.

This accord between Qatargas and Shell for the supply of LNG to Kuwait follows the recent pact signed between Qatar Petroleum and Kuwait Petroleum Corp. 

Cargoes of LNG are shipped at present to the dockside facility at Mina Al-Ahmadi in Kuwait. This terminal has been in operation since 2009.

However, the Gulf nation is building a second and larger onshore terminal close to a new refinery complex at Al-Zour, about 90 kilometres south of Kuwait City.

The new Kuwaiti terminal is being constructed  by a consortium led by Hyundai Engineering Co. of South Korea.

“These agreements demonstrate our commitment to Kuwait, which is a very important LNG market,” said the Qatari Minister of State for Energy Affairs, Saad bin Sherida al-Kaabi, who is also President and Chief Executive of Qatar Petroleum.

He added that the new SPA further underlined Qatargas’s position as the a market leader in LNG and demonstrated the company’s track-record of providing reliable LNG to the global market place.

The supplies will come from the Qatargas IV Train at Ras Laffan. This is a joint venture owned 70 percent by Qatar Petroleum and 30 percent by Shell.

Kuwait’s domestic natural gas demand is increasing in line with other Middle East nations and it is already receiving additional deliveries from new suppliers such as the US.

The expansion in infrastructure comes as Kuwait and its neighbour, the United Arab Emirates, are already among the top 20 destinations for shipments from US exporters such as Cheniere’s Energy’s Sabine Pass export plant in Louisiana.

The state of Kuwait, like the other Gulf Cooperation Council members is embarking on an ambitious path of economic growth.

This requires cleaner energy sources such as natural gas that will contribute to reducing emissions and improving local air quality, while also supplying energy for industry and domestic consumption.

Kuwait has issued tenders to construct facilities to store LNG and convert it to gas at its Al-Ahmadi oil refinery.

According to local Kuwaiti newspaper reports, the state-owned Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) issued the tender for “the LNG storage and conversion services contract” at Al-Ahmadi, which is undergoing expansion within the country’s multi-billion-dollar clean fuel project.

Bidding for the project will close on 6^th October and bidders must submit all documents specified by KNPC, the Arabic language daily Alseyassah said.

May 22 (LNGJ) - Korea Trade Insurance Corp. (K-Sure) said it would underwrite the construction of the proposed Kuwait onshore LNG import terminal to the tune of US$1.15 billion. The South Korean companies Hyundai Engineering and Korea Gas Corp. formed a consortium and secured the construction contract for the facility to be completed at the Gulf state’s Al-Zour industrial zone by 2020. Kuwait National Petroleum Co currently imports LNG via a floating facility at the port of Mina Al-Ahmadi, located south of Kuwait City.

Singapore LNG cargo indices jumped to new highs over US$8.00 per million British thermal units through to the second half of July, while North Asia and Dubai-Kuwait-India shipments are both quoted at around $8.50 per MMBtu for July deliveries.

The Kuwaiti authorities have agreed a proposal for pipeline infrastructure to be connected to the onshore LNG import terminal planned for the port of Al-Zour, adding to volumes shipped to the existing floating import facility at Mina Al-Ahmadi.

Qatargas has signed a supply agreement with Kuwait Petroleum Corp. to deliver 500,000 tonnes per annum of cargoes over the next four years to the Gulf state’s floating import facility at the port of Mina Al Ahmadi.