Korean shipyard hosts naming ceremony for QatarEnergy's 174,000-cbm LNG carrier. July 15, 2026, by Melisa Cavcic Qatar's state-owned oil and gas giant QatarEnergy has strengthened its global shipping fleet with the naming ceremony for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier (LNGC) at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' shipyard in South Korea. A joint venture - sponsored by Japan's Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line), Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, China LNG Shipping, and MISC through its wholly owned subsidiary, Portovenere and Lerici (Labuan) -held a naming ceremony for a 174,000 cubic meter (cbm) LNG vessel for QatarEnergy at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' facility on July 14. The newbuild vessel, which expands the Persian Gulf State giant's fleet, was named Halwan after a source of water in Qatar. This ship is the ninth in a series of 12 LNG vessels that the joint venture has been building for QatarEnergy, and it is the second of three vessels for which K Line is responsible for ship management. The Qatari giant will assign the vessel to global LNG transport. The vessel is equipped with X-DF 2.1 iCER, a low-speed dual-fuel engine with LNG at low pressure, and an air lubrication system that uses air bubbles generated along the bottom of the ship to reduce the resistance between the ship's hull and seawater, which will contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and environmental impact by lowering fuel consumption in operation. The seventh and eighth 174,000-cubic meter LNG vessels were named in December 2025. The first ship was named Sharq and the second Shra'Ouh. These vessels are also equipped with X-DF 2.1 iCER. QatarEnergy's LNG fleet expansion program entails 128 vessels, including 24 QC-Max-size LNG ships. K Line positioned the LNG business as a top priority in its future investments within its medium-term management plan published in May 2022. The Japanese firm intends to continue responding to the diverse needs of its customers to expand its long-term contracts and accommodate the growing energy demand. Power your brand with offshore energy. Take the spotlight and anchor your brand in the heart of the offshore world! Join Offshore Energy International for a bigger impact and amplify your presence at the core hub of the offshore energy community!

James Barratt discusses QatarEnergy force majeure declarations in Energy Intelligence. Media Coverage Vinson & Elkins Partner James Barratt talked with Energy Intelligence about QatarEnergy's force majeure declarations and the impact of the Strait of Hormuz reopening on the company's efforts to resume LNG exports. The article examines the legal and commercial challenges that may arise following QatarEnergy's declaration of force majeure after damage to LNG production facilities at its Ras Laffan complex, including the allocation of LNG volumes among buyers and potential disputes over force majeure obligations, cargo scheduling, and missed deliveries. Barratt explained that the basis for QatarEnergy's force majeure claims is critical to understanding the effect of the Strait's reopening. "As we understand it, [QatarEnergy's] declaration followed the attacks that damaged its facilities at Ras Laffan - it is grounded in physical damage to production capacity, not the closure of the strait," he said. Read more here. James Barratt is a partner in Vinson & Elkins' International Dispute Resolution and Arbitration practice. He represents clients in complex international commercial disputes, with a particular focus on matters involving the energy, infrastructure, and natural resources sectors. About Vinson & Elkins For more than a century, Vinson & Elkins has provided outstanding client service across important industries that drive the global economy. Built on a strong culture of collaboration across 14 offices worldwide, V&E lawyers are committed to excellence, offering clients decades of legal experience in handling transactions, investments, projects and disputes across the globe. Learn more by visiting www.velaw.com or connect with Vinson & Elkins LLP on LinkedIn.

Contractors submit bids for QatarEnergy urea facility expansion. 6 July 2026 Contractors have submitted bids to QatarEnergy for a planned project to expand its low-carbon ammonia and urea output capacity by building a new production complex in Qatar's Mesaieed Industrial City. The planned blue ammonia and urea production facility will have a total output capacity of 6.4 million tonnes a year (t/y) and is understood to be the eighth expansion phase of QatarEnergy's fertiliser production complex located in Mesaieed, MEED reported last April. QatarEnergy issued the main tender for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works on the blue ammonia and urea production facility expansion project in July last year. Prior to that, the Qatari state enterprise held a meeting with contractors last March to lay out plans for the project, MEED previously reported. The state energy giant had set an initial deadline of 15 January for the submission of bids for the project, which it then extended several times until 15 April, 31 May, 15 June and then to 29 June. Contractors submitted their proposals by that final deadline, according to sources. The following contractors, among others, are understood to have been invited by QatarEnergy to bid for the blue ammonia and urea production facility expansion project: * Tecnimont (Italy) / Larsen & Toubro Energy Hydrocarbon (India) * Samsung E&A (South Korea) / Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions (Germany) / Consolidated Contractors Company (Lebanon) * Saipem (Italy) / CTCI (Taiwan) / CC7 (China) Licensed technologies are critical to the facility's operations, so QatarEnergy has stipulated that contractors include technology providers in the bidding process. QatarEnergy was earlier expected to take a final investment decision on the project in the second quarter of 2026 and award the EPC contract in the third quarter. With the bid submission deadline delayed until the end of May it remains to be seen when the state enterprise achieves FID on the project. The basic scope of EPC works on the blue ammonia and urea production facility expansion project is understood to include the following: * Urea and ammonia plants to produce 6.4 million t/y of urea * Urea formaldehyde plants * Nitrogen production units * Power unit for the supply of 400MW * Units for the supply of 415 million cubic feet a day of sweet gas * Extension and additional bulk halls storage for urea * Export conveyors to Jetty 2 * Three new urea berths on Jetty 2 * New ammonia tank with a storage capacity of 30,000 metric tonnes * Relocation of ammonia loading facilities * Desalination plant * Seawater supply and return * Logistics and office buildings In September 2024, QatarEnergy announced its aim to build four new urea production lines at Mesaieed Industrial City, increasing Qatar's urea output capacity by 106%. The production lines will raise Qatar's production of urea - a key ingredient in fertilisers - from 6 million t/y to more than 12.4 million t/y. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar's minister of state for energy affairs and president and CEO of QatarEnergy, said the first production line will enter operations before 2030. "When we looked at the market for urea in the future, with the growth of humanity today, with 1.5-2 billion people that will be joining us in the next 20-30 years, the urea requirement for food production will be exponentially increasing," Al-Kaabi said at the time. "Developing this project in Mesaieed Industrial City will ensure the optimum utilisation of the excellent existing infrastructure for the petrochemicals and fertiliser industries, including the city's export port, which is one of the largest fertiliser and petrochemicals export facilities in the [Middle East and North Africa] region. "It will also establish Mesaieed as the urea production capital of the world," he added. The planned expansion of its blue ammonia and urea production capacity comes as QatarEnergy makes progress on its estimated $1.2bn Ammonia-7 project. The under-construction facility in Mesaieed will have a capacity of 1.2 million t/y of blue ammonia, making it the world's largest blue ammonia facility. The complex will also have an additional unit for carbon dioxide injection and storage, with a capacity of 1.5 million t/y. QatarEnergy will supply the new plant with more than 35MW of electricity from the solar power plant under construction in Mesaieed Industrial City. QatarEnergy began work on the blue ammonia production project in September 2022, when its subsidiaries Qatar Fertiliser Company (Qafco) and QatarEnergy Renewable Solutions signed an agreement to develop the complex. In addition to signing the agreement for the development of the facility, the operators also formally awarded the project's EPC contract to a consortium of Germany's Thyssenkrupp Uhde and Greece/Lebanon-headquartered Consolidated Contractors Company. The value of the EPC contract is $1bn, QatarEnergy previously said. The facility is due to start operations this year and will be operated by Qafco as part of its integrated facilities.