QatarEnergy signed an agreement with China State Shipbuilding Corporation for the construction of 18 ultra-modern QC-Max size LNG vessels

With the signing of the deal, QatarEnergy added a major component to its historic LNG fleet development program: the construction of eighteen cutting-edge QC-Max size LNG tankers by China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC). The new ships will be built at China's Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CSSC, and will have a capacity of 271,000 cubic meters each. They will be equipped with cutting-edge technological innovation and environmental performance.

At a special ceremony attended by senior executives from QatarEnergy, QatarEnergy LNG, and China State Shipbuilding Corporation, the agreement was signed in Beijing by HE Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, and Chen Jianliang, Chairman of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co. Ltd and Li Hongtao, Chairman of China Shipbuilding Trading Co.Ltd. A number of high-ranking Chinese government representatives as well as Qatar's ambassador to the People's Republic of China, Mohamed Abdullah Al-Dehaimi, were present at the signing ceremony.

QC-Maxsize LNG has 18 vessels in total; eight will be delivered in 2028 and 2029, and the remaining 10 in 2030 and 2031.

This latest achievement emphasizes even more how closely the People's Republic of China and the State of Qatar are cooperating, particularly in the energy industry. China was the primary recipient of Qatari LNG imports in 2023, accounting for about 17 million tons of LNG. In 2023, Qatar remained a significant supplier to the Chinese market, accounting for 8.6 million tons of crude oil, 2.3 million tons of naphtha, 2.2 million tons of LPG, 650 million cubic feet of helium, and 1.6 million tons of fertilizers, polymers, and chemicals.