Qatar's Barzan gas plant starts with capacity at 1.4 Bcf/d

Qatar's Barzan natural gas plant was officially started March 15, providing one of the world's largest LNG exporters a new source of fuel for domestic and export use.

The Barzan gas plant is capable of producing about 1.4 Bcf/d of gas for local power generation and water desalination; 2,000 mt/day of ethane as feedstock for the local petrochemicals industry; 1,500 mt/d of LPG for export; 30,000 b/d of condensate for processing in the Laffan refinery for export; and 3,500 mt/d of sulfur for export, QatarEnergy said in a statement.

The gas will be sourced from North Field in the Persian Gulf, which is feeding an expansion in LNG capacity to 126 million mt/year by 2027 from 77 million mt/year currently.

"This is one of the most important energy projects in the state of Qatar," Saad al Kaabi, minister of state for energy affairs and also CEO of QatarEnergy, said in the statement.

The plant will provide fuel for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, among other uses, he said.

Qatargas operates the plant, which is 93% owned by QatarEnergy and 7% by ExxonMobil.