De Franse elektriciteitsproducent EDF heeft vrij onverwacht de hand gelegd op een groot deel van het aardgas uit Qatar dat via Zeebrugge wordt ingevoerd. EDF sloot een contract voor vier jaar. Ras Gas levert trouwens 20 jaar lang jaarlijks ruim 9 miljard kubieke meter gas in onze kusthaven. EDF heeft de helft van dat volume gekocht. De andere helft gaat zoals gebruikelijk naar de Belgische gasinvoerder Distrigas en Suez Global LNG, allebei dochter van de Franse nutsgroep Suez. EDF verkoopt op dit moment geen aardgas aan zijn Belgische klanten en heeft geen gascentrales in ons land. De groep liet eerder uitschijnen dat ze geïnteresseerd is in het verwerven van productiecapaciteit in België. Het valt te verwachten dat EDF het Qatarese gas ook zal gebruiken om zijn Franse klanten te bevoorraden. RasGas begon dit jaar met de aanvoer van aardgas per lng-schip uit Ras Laffan, het grootste gasveld ter wereld, naar Zeebrugge. EDF AND RASGAS ANNOUNCE LNG SUPPLY DEAL
Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Company Limited (II) (RasGas) and the EDF Group, through its 100 % controlled subsidiary EDF Trading Ltd, have signed a mid-term (approximately 4.5-year) liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply agreement with flexibility for interruptible deliveries of up to 3.4 million tonnes of LNG per year, equivalent to approximately 4.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. The LNG, which will be sourced from one of RasGas's existing LNG production trains in the State of Qatar, will be delivered ex-ship at the Zeebrugge LNG terminal in Belgium. This agreement will facilitate the deliveries of Qatari LNG to markets in northwest Europe and is consistent with the RasGas shareholders' and the State of Qatar's long term strategy for expanding and diversifying its natural gas market. It is another major achievement for the State of Qatar and highlights a successful effort between RasGas, its shareholders Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil, and the EDF Group. This contract marks the establishment of a long-term relationship between EDF and RasGas. It furthers the existing positions of EDF in the LNG business: the signature by Edison (50 % controlled by EDF) of a LNG supply contract with RasGas for future deliveries at the Rovigo offshore LNG terminal (Italy), the launching of studies for a regasification terminal project in Dunkirk (France) and the acquisition by its subsidiary EDF Trading of regasification capacity at the Montoir-de-Bretagne LNG terminal (France) over a two-year period. For His Excellency Dr. Ibrahim B. Ibrahim, Economic Advisor to the Emir of the State of Qatar, RasGas Vice-Chairman and Chairman of RasGas Marketing Committee: "We are delighted to add EDF Trading to our portfolio of LNG customers. The strategic location of the Zeebrugge LNG terminal, and the access it affords to the European gas market, makes this deal a true success for RasGas." For Pierre Gadonneix, Chairman and CEO of EDF: "By this agreement the EDF Group becomes one of the main counterparties with RasGas in Europe. It marks another step in the implementation of the EDF Group's strategy to strengthen its positions in natural gas." About RasGas RasGas Company Limited is owned by Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil RasGas Inc. RasGas operates production facilities to treat, liquefy and export LNG to countries across Asia, Europe and USA. Based in Ras Laffan, Qatar, RasGas currently produces over 20 million metric tonnes of LNG per year (Mta) with five trains in operation. It is expected that this production will be approximately 37 Mta by the end of the decade, with the completion of seven operational trains.
