Natural gas giant Qatar Petroleum has issued an 'invitation to tender' for the reservation of ship construction capacity required for the LNG carrier fleet for its North Field Expansion (NFE) Project offshore Qatar.

The project will increase Qatar's LNG production capacity from 77 million tons per annum (mta) to 110 mta starting in 2024.

QP said on Monday that, in addition to addressing shipping requirements for the North Field Expansion Project, the tender covers shipping requirements for the LNG volumes that will be purchased and offtaken by Ocean LNG (a 70%/30% joint venture between Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil) from the Golden Pass LNG export project in the United States, which is currently under construction and is planned to start by 2024.

The tender also includes options for replacement requirements for Qatar's existing LNG fleet, the company added.

Commenting on this occasion, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President & CEO of Qatar Petroleum, said: “With this significant step, Qatar Petroleum embarks on another major LNG ship-building campaign expected to initially deliver 60 LNG carriers in support of the planned production expansion, with a potential to exceed 100 new LNG carriers over the next decade.”

Al-Kaabi added: “This tender, along with the recently released Engineering, Procurement and Construction tender for four new mega LNG trains planned as part of the North Field Expansion Project, constitute two monumental and historical milestones as we make major strides in our commitment towards the further development of the world's largest non-associated gas field.”

Qatar Petroleum has entrusted Qatargas to execute this LNG shipbuilding program on its behalf.

Earlier this month McDermott was awarded a large contract by Qatargas for engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCI) for expansion of the North Field offshore facilities in Qatar. The contract for new facilities includes the full suite of EPCI services for eight new offshore jackets.

In addition, Qatar Petroleum last week issued the invitation to Tender Package for engineering procurement and construction of the four Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) mega-trains of its NFE project. The package was issued to three EPC Joint Ventures: Chiyoda Corporation and Technip France S.A.; JGC Corporation and Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co. Ltd; and Saipem S.p.A, McDermott Middle East Inc. and CTCI Corporation.

​​The North Field lies off the north-east shore of the Qatar peninsula and covers an area of more than 6,000 square kilometers, equivalent to about half the land area of the State of Qatar.​​

The development of this major natural resource has been a significant factor in Qatar's economic growth. The gas produced from this giant field is processed to produce LNG, GTL, NGL, and other gas-related industries, in addition to pipeline gas for export.​​