An explosion and fire occurred on Sunday at the Barzan gas facility in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar, which is home to state-owned QatarEnergy's main liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facilities. The incident resulted in over 50 injuries and 18 people remain missing. The Barzan plant supplies gas to the domestic market.

Impact on LNG Production

The operator was working to resume full LNG production at Ras Laffan after its facilities were hit by Iranian missiles in March during the Middle East conflict. Those attacks damaged Train 4 and Train 6, which have a combined production capacity of 12.8 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). Qatar's total nameplate liquefaction capacity is 77 mtpa, which is being increased in phases.

Official Statements and Response

Qatar's Ministry of Interior reported via an X post that 54 people were injured in the incident at a factory in Ras Laffan Industrial City, without detailing the extent of injuries. The Qatar International Search and Rescue Group of the Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya), in cooperation with Civil Defence teams, is conducting search operations for the 18 missing persons. Earlier, the ministry attributed the explosion to a "technical accident" and stated there was no leak posing a threat to public safety.

Details of the Incident

QatarEnergy confirmed an "operational incident" during the start-up of operations at Ras Laffan Industrial City, which caused an explosion and fire at the Barzan local gas supply facility on the evening of Sunday, 21 June. Emergency response teams were deployed immediately and contained the fire, which was under control later that day.

Barzan Facility Capabilities

Commissioned in 2022, the Barzan facility supplies pipeline gas to local industries and Qatar's power generation sector. It also provides associated hydrocarbon products to local refineries, petrochemical industries, and international markets. According to QatarEnergy's website, the facility can deliver 1.4 billion cubic feet per day of sales gas to local power generation and water desalination plants, as well as local industries. Additionally, Barzan has production capacity for ethane, condensate, liquid petroleum gas, and sulphur for local markets and export.

QatarEnergy stated it would continue to communicate the latest available information.