Qatar is set to secure a second huge gas supply deal with a Chinese state-controlled company in less than a year, in a sign of the energy-hungry Asia power rushing to secure long-term agreements with one of the world’s top exporters of liquefied natural gas. China National Petroleum Corporation and QatarEnergy are expected to sign a 27-year agreement on Tuesday, under which China will purchase 4mn tonnes of LNG a year from the Gulf state, said people briefed on the matter. CNPC will also take a 5 per cent equity in Qatar’s expansion project in its North Field, the world’s biggest natural gas reservoir, as a joint venture partner.
The agreement comes just seven months after China’s Sinopec reached a similar 27-year deal with QatarEnergy, which at