Italy will receive liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Golden Pass, a new terminal that started operating a few days ago in Texas, on the coast of the Gulf of the United States. The plant is owned by the Qatari state company QatarEnergy and the American oil company ExxonMobil; once all three of its units are operational, it will reach an annual production capacity of 18 million tons.
Supplies from Golden Pass will arrive in Italy starting from June, according to Reuters sources, and will allow our country to partially offset the loss of Qatari volumes. Italy is the European country that imports the most gas from Qatar, which accounts for about 10 percent of total gas imports, and is therefore exposed to the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz: Qatar, in fact, had to suspend LNG production following Iranian attacks on the Ras Laffan complex and declared force majeure, meaning the inability to meet contractual obligations.
QATAR GAS AND THE CONTRACTS OF ENI AND EDISON
In 2023 Eni secured a supply of 1.5 billion cubic meters per year of Qatari liquefied gas, lasting twenty-seven years with deliveries starting precisely in 2026.
Edison, an Italian energy company controlled by the French group EDF, also holds an LNG supply contract with Qatar: it is worth 6.4 billion cubic meters per year, equivalent to 10 percent of Italy’s annual gas consumption. However, last week QatarEnergy informed Edison that it would not be able to ship the ten cargos scheduled from April to mid-June due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran.
THE IMPACT OF IRANIAN ATTACKS ON QATAR’S LNG
QatarEnergy’s force majeure declaration affects not only Italy but also Belgium, South Korea, and China. The company’s CEO, Saad al-Kaabi, had said that the Iranian attacks put 17 percent of Qatar’s LNG export capacity out of service.
WHERE GOLDEN PASS LNG WILL ARRIVE
It is not clear how much LNG from Golden Pass will arrive in Italy; however, we know that the cargos will head to the regasification terminal in Porto Viro, near Rovigo. The company managing this plant, Adriatic LNG, was previously controlled by ExxonMobil and QatarEnergy (the owners of Golden Pass), before the entry of Vtti and Ikav and the increase in Snam’s stake.
Rovigo was also the destination of Qatari LNG received by Edison.
HOW MUCH LNG DOES ITALY IMPORT
Italy already imports a considerable amount of American LNG. In 2025, our liquefied gas imports nearly reached 21 billion cubic meters: the top suppliers in this segment are the United States with a 44 percent share, followed at a distance by Qatar (24 percent) and Algeria (21 percent).
