An LNG tanker arriving in Singapore
Liquids give Qatar LNG negative breakeven – Rystad
Existing Ras Laffan trains could cover costs even if LNG prices went to zero
State-owned Mid-East Gulf gas behemoth Qatar Petroleum’s Qatargas 1 Train 1 has an estimated variable cost of LNG production of just $1.60/mn Btu, according to analysis by consultancy Rystad Energy. But, if pre-tax liquids revenue from associated liquids production is considered, it calculates these costs are offset by oil revenues of c.$2.60/mn Btu. And that brings net costs down to -$1/mn Btu. Qatari production is therefore in the money even if LNG prices moved to zero or even into slightly negative territory. In an increasingly flexible global market, such a scenario is unlikely. But the UK NBP gas market, for example, has briefly experienced negative pricing previously, when North Sea as
Also in this section
19 February 2026
US LNG exporter Cheniere Energy has grown its business rapidly since exporting its first cargo a decade ago. But Chief Commercial Officer Anatol Feygin tells Petroleum Economist that, as in the past, the company’s future expansion plans are anchored by high levels of contracted offtake, supporting predictable returns on investment
19 February 2026
Growth in LNG supply will surpass the rise in demand in 2026 for the first time in years, according to Mike Fulwood, senior research fellow at the OIES, but lower prices are likely to encourage fuel switching and could create more demand on a permanent basis
19 February 2026
Awais Ali Butt, manager for sales and business development at Pakistan LNG Ltd, discusses LNG’s role in energy security across developing, price-sensitive economies, as well as examining trade-offs between buying strategies and the impact of lower prices and policy on import behaviour
19 February 2026
LNG’s technical maturity, availability and price, as well as regulation, have driven its rapid adoption as a marine fuel, yet its future in shipping will depend on transition policies and progress in cutting methane emissions and scaling bio- and synthetic LNG, according to Carlos Guerrero at Bureau Veritas
