Qatar’s Barzan Project Contributes to Mideast’s Natural Gas Production Growth: IGU

Qatar's Barzan project has contributed to the Middle East region's natural gas production growth last year, according to International Gas Union in its 2025 Global Gas Report.

Commissioned in 2022, the Barzan facility supplies pipeline gas to local industries and Qatar’s power generation sector. It also supplies associated hydrocarbon products to local refineries and petrochemical industries and international markets.

According to QatarEnergy, the facility can provide 1.4 BSCFD of sales gas to local power generation and water desalination plants as well as local industries.

In addition, Barzan has the production capacity to supply ethane, condensate, LPG and sulphur for local markets and export.

Further increases are expected in 2025, with Saudi Arabia’s production projected to rise by 8 bcm, as the first phase of Jafurah field – the country’s largest unconventional natural gas development – is expected to begin operations before the end of the year.

The development of Saudi Arabia’s gas resources aligns with national plans to replace up to 1 mmbbl/d of oil with natural gas in the power generation sector and to support the expansion of petrochemicals, blue hydrogen and ammonia production.

In the Middle East, natural gas production growth was recorded across all major oil and gas producers in 2024, with the UAE leading the increase with a gain of 7bcm, IGU noted.

Natural gas supply grew by 65 bcm (1.6%) y-o-y in 2024, reaching 4,090 bcm, driven by significant production gains in the Middle East (+30 bcm, 4.4%) and Russia (+30 bcm, 5.1%).

These increases were supported by marginal growth in Asia (+17 bcm, 2.5%), and North America (+5 bcm, 0.4%), which collectively offset declines in other regions.

This growth was supported by a 9bcm increase in global liquefaction capacity. In the US, capacity expanded with the year-end startup of Plaquemines LNG.

Congo became an LNG exporter with the commissioning of Congo FLNG, while Mexico – still a net importer – exported its first cargo to Europe from the new Altamira FLNG facility, IGU said.