The French oil giant Total has announced a US$1 billion (¤.75 billion) contract with Qatar, becoming the third major energy company to strike a deal in liquefied natural gas with the Gulf state. Paris-based Total said in a statement Monday it would acquire a 16.7 percent stake in a second phase of the Qatargas-2 project, an LNG venture with Qatar Petroleum and Exxon Mobil that was announced on Sunday. Total will also purchase up to 5.2 million metric tons (5.7 million US tons) of LNG per year from Qatargas-2 for a period of 25 years, shipping the super cooled, biannually to Britain over 25 years starting in 2007. Separately, Qatar Petroleum signed an LNG joint venture worth at least US$6 billion (¤4.5 billion) with the Royal Dutch/Shell Group on Sunday. That deal will bring 7.8 million metric tons (8.6 million US tons) of liquefied gas a year to U.S. and European markets, beginning as early as 2010. Total's entry into the fray boosts the French oil group's stake into the growing business of ferrying LNG to Atlantic markets where gas has traditionally been delivered by pipeline. Total chief executive Thierry Desmarest said in the statement that the venture was an "important step" in the expansion of Total's LNG portfolio. Total already holds 10 percent of Qatargas, and is one of the company's founding partners. The French oil group also operates Qatar's al-Khalij oil field and has petrochemical investments in the Gulf state.
