Klaipėda Oil opens talks with Qatari company on gas supply

"Both sides having expressed their interest in cooperating in the energy sphere and having discussed the cooperation opportunities on the highest level, Klaipėdos Nafta started actual negotiations with Qatargas on supply of gas to the Lithuanian liquefied natural gas terminal. The negotiation confidentiality agreement has already been signed," President's press office said in a press release issued on Sunday.

Lithuania seeks to ensure that upon launching the liquefied natural gas terminal and expiry of the gas supply agreement with Russia's Gazprom in 2015, the gas supply reaches up to 0.7-1 billion cubic meters per year, the President's Office said. The planned annual capacity of the LNG terminal is 2 to 3 billion cubic meters.

"Qatar is interested in gas supply to Lithuania as it will contribute to diversification of the current supplies which are mostly to Japan, South Korea and India," the president's press service said.

Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaitė said during a working visit to Qatar that doors for cooperation with Qatar, a country in the Arabian Peninsula and the largest liquefied natural gas supplier in the world, were open.

The President's Office said that the possibility of supplying was also negotiated with Norway, Algeria, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, and Azerbaijan.

On Sunday, Grybauskaitė met with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and his family members who hold leading administrative positions in the country.

The president introduced to the Qatar leaders the project of the liquefied natural gas terminal under construction in Lithuania and discussed the opportunities to supply gas to Lithuania.

"Lithuania is ready and willing to have a package of a few countries it could conclude supply deals with. We cannot be dependent upon one, two or three suppliers. Lithuania must have safe supplies, which would indeed guarantee energy security for the people of Lithuania, as well as independence and competitive prices, which we all hope for and expect to see in the future," Grybauskaitė said.

According to the press release, Qatar's emir has said that cooperation with Lithuania in the energy sector will be mutually beneficial. Whereas Qatar's leader voiced his political support for the supply of gas to our country, the ministers and specialists have been assigned the task to coordinate the technical details.

Qatargas produces and supplies approximately 42 million cubic meters of LNG per year. The list of its shareholders includes Qatar Petroleum, ExxonMobil, Total, Mitsui, and Marubeni.

Lithuania intends to build an LNG terminal, which would launch operations at the end of 2014 and reduce the country’s dependence on Russia’s gas supplied by Gazprom.