Shell invests £5 billion in world's largest GTL plant
20 Oct 2003
Qatar Petroleum (QP) and Qatar Shell GTL Ltd (Shell) today signed a Heads of Agreement (HoA) for the construction of the world's largest Gas to Liquids (GTL) plant in Ras Laffan, Qatar.
The agreement was signed by His Excellency Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Industry of Qatar on behalf of Qatar Petroleum and by Sir Philip Watts, Chairman of the Committee of Managing Directors of the Royal/Dutch Shell Group of Companies.
The project includes the development of a block within Qatar's North Field gas reserves, producing 1.6 billion cubic feet-per-day of gas.
Shell plans to invest around $5 billion to develop upstream gas and liquids facilities and an onshore GTL plant that will produce 140,000 barrels per day (bpd) of GTL products as well as significant quantities of associated condensate and Liquefied Petroleum Gas.
The project will be developed in two phases with the first phase operational between 2008 and 2009, producing around 70,000 bpd of GTL products. The second phase will be completed less than two years later.
Qatar's North Field is the world's largest natural gas accumulation, with reserves of over 900 trillion cubic feet. GTL reportedly offers a commercially attractive way of bringing gas reserves to market.
