QatarEnergy Set to Further Expand LNG Output at North Field

The new Qatar Energy logo is pictured during a news conference in Doha, Qatar, October 11, 2021. Qatar News Agency/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
The new Qatar Energy logo is pictured during a news conference in Doha, Qatar, October 11, 2021. Qatar News Agency/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
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QatarEnergy Set to Further Expand LNG Output at North Field

The new Qatar Energy logo is pictured during a news conference in Doha, Qatar, October 11, 2021. Qatar News Agency/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
The new Qatar Energy logo is pictured during a news conference in Doha, Qatar, October 11, 2021. Qatar News Agency/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

QatarEnergy chief Saad al-Kaabi announced on Sunday a new expansion of its liquefied natural gas production that will add a further 16 million tons per annum (mtpa) to existing expansion plans, bringing total capacity to 142 mtpa.
With this added boost, the overall expansion of the North Field from 77 mtpa currently to 142 mtpa by 2030 represents an increase of 85% in production, Kaabi said at a press conference in Doha.
State-owned QatarEnergy has already signed a string of supply deals with European and Asian partners in its massive North Field expansion project, which was expected - prior to Sunday's announcement - to produce 126 million mtpa of LNG per annum by 2027, from the current 77 mtpa.
Exploration activities in the west of North Field prompted the company's decision to expand further.
In December, Kaabi told Reuters that QatarEnergy had been drilling wells to assess expansion opportunities beyond the North Field East and North Field South phases.
This latest expansion will require the construction of two LNG trains, in addition to six already underway for the earlier expansions dubbed North Field East and North Field South.



Dollar General Forecasts Tepid 2025 due to Strained Consumer Spending

A teller sorts US dollar banknotes inside the cashier's booth at a forex exchange bureau in downtown Nairobi, Kenya February 16, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File photo
A teller sorts US dollar banknotes inside the cashier's booth at a forex exchange bureau in downtown Nairobi, Kenya February 16, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File photo
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Dollar General Forecasts Tepid 2025 due to Strained Consumer Spending

A teller sorts US dollar banknotes inside the cashier's booth at a forex exchange bureau in downtown Nairobi, Kenya February 16, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File photo
A teller sorts US dollar banknotes inside the cashier's booth at a forex exchange bureau in downtown Nairobi, Kenya February 16, 2024. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File photo

Dollar General on Thursday forecast annual sales and profit targets below estimates, joining a growing list of retailers that have signalled a grim year as still-high inflation and economic uncertainty dent consumer spending.

Retailers including Walmart, Target, Home Depot and Best Buy have raised caution about weak consumer spending in 2025 due to tariff uncertainty, as well as potential price hikes the levies would bring about, Reuters reported.

Shares of Dollar General were, however, up about 5% in premarket trading, as the discount retailer beat estimates for holiday-quarter sales and profit. The stock has slumped nearly 70% over the last two years.

The company benefitted from improving its private-label brands selling everyday essentials, and remodelling its stores as part of a turnaround plan laid out by CEO Todd Vasos late in 2023.

For the holiday quarter, its comparable sales rose 1.2%, ahead of estimates of a 0.96% rise, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Sales in the consumables category, which makes up about 80% of Dollar General's revenue, grew 5.3% in the quarter ended January 1, helping the company report a profit of $1.68 per share, topping estimates of $1.50.

The company expects annual same-store sales growth between 1.2% and 2.2%, compared with analysts' average estimate of a 1.82% rise.

It also forecast fiscal 2025 profit per share of about $5.10 to $5.80, below analysts' average estimate of $5.85.