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What is Qatar's "Ras Laffan" facility and why could attacks on it have global implications?

2026-03-19 11:39:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

What is Qatar's "Ras Laffan" facility and why could attacks on it

In less than 12 hours, Iranian missiles hit Qatar's Ras Laffan Industrial City twice, causing "extensive damage" to the critical energy hub in the Gulf state. But the impact is expected to spread beyond the Middle East.

Operated by state-owned company QatarEnergy, Ras Laffan is arguably the most important liquefied natural gas (LNG) hub in the world, combining transportation, processing and port facilities.

Qatar exports about 20% of global LNG supply, the second largest exporter after the United States, with almost all of its gas transported from Ras Laffan.

Production of LNG and other products there has been suspended since early March due to the effective closure of the vital shipping corridor of the Strait of Hormuz, and significant damage to production facilities could further extend the time it takes to restart the facility.

Several South Asian countries, including Pakistan, Bangladesh and India, are expected to bear the brunt, as they rely on Qatar for more than half of their LNG supplies and have limited reserves.

But Ras Laffan also supplies countries in other parts of Asia, Europe and Africa, which would be forced to cope with supply disruptions.

Beyond LNG, Ras Laffan also produces urea and ammonia, key supplies for the agricultural industry, as well as sulfur and helium, a gas essential in microchip production. The center could supply about 25% of the world's helium production, according to QatarEnergy.

Ras Laffan Industrial City is located on the northeastern tip of the Qatar Peninsula and about 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of Doha.

It processes gas from a large reserve in the Persian Gulf that it shares with Iran; Qatar calls its part the "North Dome" field, while Iran calls it South Pars. /CNA





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