QatarEnergy declared force majeure on several long-term liquefied natural gas contracts on Wednesday, citing damage from Iranian missile strikes on its Ras Laffan Industrial City facilities.

The state-owned company, the world's largest LNG exporter, invoked the clause after attacks on March 18 and 19 destroyed production capacity equivalent to 12.8 million tons per year, or 17 percent of Qatar's total LNG exports. Affected contracts supply customers in China, South Korea, Italy, and Belgium, including Shell, KOGAS, Edison, and EDF Trading.

QatarEnergy CEO Saad Sherida al-Kaabi stated the damage to LNG Trains 4 and 6 will require three to five years to repair, leading to an estimated $20 billion in annual lost revenue. "The damage sustained by the LNG facilities will take between three and five years to repair," al-Kaabi said. "This means that we will be compelled to declare force majeure for up to five years on some long-term LNG contracts."

The strikes also hit the Pearl gas-to-liquids facility operated by Shell, taking one of its two trains offline for at least a year and reducing exports of condensates, LPG, naphtha, sulfur, and helium.

This follows an initial production halt on March 2 at Ras Laffan and Mesaieed facilities amid disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz from the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, which began late February. QatarEnergy first declared force majeure on March 4 to affected buyers, with restarts initially estimated at weeks but now extended due to the strikes.

Al-Kaabi condemned the attacks as "unjustified and senseless," calling them assaults on global energy security. No injuries occurred, thanks to the rapid response by Qatari forces.

The disruptions have rippled through markets, with traders like Shell and TotalEnergies issuing their own force majeure notices to downstream clients in early March. European LNG imports from Qatar fell last year, and the shortfall threatens winter supplies, pushing prices higher across Asia and Europe.

QatarEnergy has prioritized safety and continues to update stakeholders on recovery efforts.