Britain’s Centrica Extends Qatar LNG Supply Contract to 2018

The LNG carrier “Bu Samra”, pictured above, was the first “Q-Max” carrier to deliver an LNG cargo to the Isle of Grain LNG Receiving Terminal in the UK in April 2011. Image courtesy QatarGas

By Anna Shiryaevskaya

Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) — Centrica Plc agreed to extend a liquefied natural gas accord with Qatar Liquefied Gas Co. to December 2018 as the U.K. seeks to offset declining production from North Sea fields.

Centrica may buy as much as 3 million metric tons a year of LNG from QatarGas, worth 4.4 billion pounds ($7.1 billion) at current U.K. prices, the Windsor, England-based company said today in a statement. That’s enough to meet the needs of 3 million homes, it said.

The deal builds on a 2.4 million ton a year agreement with QatarGas for supplies into the Isle of Grain terminal near London, which was signed in February 2011 and expires in June 2014. Tankers with a total capacity of 1.3 million cubic meters of LNG, equivalent to 615,000 tons, have arrived this year at the Isle of Grain from the Middle East and Mediterranean Sea, according to ship data compiled by Bloomberg.

“It is vital that the U.K. has a diverse range of sources of supply to meet its energy requirements,” Centrica Chief Executive Officer Sam Laidlaw said in the statement. “Contracts like this underpin the U.K.’s access to global LNG supplies.”

Centrica this year agreed a 20-year deal to import LNG from the U.S. starting from September 2018. Last year, it signed a three-year deal with Gazprom Marketing & Trading Ltd. to buy gas at the U.K.’s National Balancing Point hub starting from October 2014.

Copyright 2013 Bloomberg.

Unlock Exclusive Insights Today!

Join the gCaptain Club for curated content, insider opinions, and vibrant community discussions.

Sign Up