Qatar orders six vessels from South Korea as LNG demand grows

The gas-rich country is buying four ships from Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering and two from Samsung Heavy Industries. The vessels procurement is part of a $19 billion signed between Qatar and the two Korean firms last year, state producer Qatar Energy said on Sunday.

Qatar is spending around $30 billion to increase its LNG output by 50 percent by 2027, and Daewoo, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and Samsung have been selected to build more than 100 LNG vessels for the natural gas exporter.

The Gulf state also ordered four LNG tankers worth more than $760 million from China in October to expand its fleet, according to Bloomberg.

Qatar Energy expects global LNG demand to continue to grow until 2050, underscoring its investment.

The International Energy Agency expects global gas demand to peak in the mid-2020s as consumers shift away from fossil fuels.