Kuwait inks contracts to import 2.5m tonnes of gas a year

KUWAIT CITY — Kuwait's state-run oil firm has signed contracts to import 2.5 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) a year through 2020 to meet the emirate's needs, a company official said on Thursday.

Kuwait, a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries is rich in crude oil, but its natural gas production is too small to meet its needs, which surge during the heat of the summer when power consumption soars. Kuwait Petroleum Corp.

(KPC) signed contracts with British Petroleum and Royal Dutch Shell to buy 1 million tonnes a year from each company, its marketing chief, Nabil Buresli, told the official KUNA news agency. It signed a third contract with Qatar Gas to import half a million tonnes a year.

Buresli did not provide details of the value of the contracts. He said that after 2020, KPC plans to sign long-term contracts of up to 15 years to import 6-7 million tonnes of LNG a year. Kuwait last week inked a $2.93 billion contract with three South Korean firms for the construction of a new LNG import terminal that is due for completion in the first quarter of 2021.