Qatar says Northfield East's first LNG train is ready, gas due in November
Industry reports give conflicting dates for when the train first produced gas, leaving its true readiness unclear.
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Qatar says the first train at its Northfield East LNG expansion is ready to start, with first gas expected in November. Qatar extended a supply freeze as of October 4.
The Northfield East expansion is designed to add four mega-trains, each rated at about 8 million tonnes a year, for roughly 32 million tonnes of new capacity, taking Qatar's total LNG output from 77 million tonnes a year toward 110 million, according to a case study by QatarEnergy contractor Technip Energies.
Accounts of the first train's progress differ. One industry site, oilgasstoragenews.com, reported that Train 1 had already produced first LNG in late 2025 and was ramping through mid-2026 before unspecified conflict disruptions. A separate analysis from Discovery Alert described the project as mechanically complete and entering commissioning as of September 2026, with the first commercial cargo not targeted until 2027, later than the November date Qatar now gives.
If first gas does arrive in November, it would be the first concrete easing of the physical shortfall rather than another mediation headline, and could cap the premium that buyers in Europe and Asia have been bidding into cargoes ahead of January's Russian LNG ban. The timeline also runs alongside Qatar's continued role as mediator between the US and Iran, talks that have repeatedly stalled without changing shipping or blockade conditions. Whether the new supply actually reaches the market depends on the force majeure being lifted and on no further disruption through the Strait.