OREANDA-NEWS. Mitsui & Co., Ltd. entered into the joint venture agreement of Laffan Refinery 2 Project acquiring 1% interest in the venture. Other participants in the venture are Qatar Petroleum, Total S.A., Idemitsui Kosan Co., Ltd., Cosmo Oil Co. Ltd., and Marubeni Corporation.

Mitsui has been participating in Laffan Refinery Company with 4.5% share and it has been successfully operating phase 1 condensate refinery Laffan Refinery 1 ("LR1"; Processing Capacity: 146,000 barrels per day) built in Ras Laffan Industrial City since 2009.

Laffan Refinery 2 ("LR2"; Refining Capacity: 146,000 bpd) is expected to become operational in the latter half of 2016. The total cost of the LR2 project is anticipated to be approximately US\\$1.5 billion. As with LR1, LR2 will produce high value-added petroleum product such as naphtha, kerosene, gasoil and LPG by refining condensate produced from the North Field of Qatar, the largest single natural gas field in the world. Furthermore, LR2 is designed to offer extra added value with newly equipped diesel hydrotreater for desulfurization which enables to produce environmentally-friendly gasoil. Meanwhile, sharing certain facilities between LR1 and LR2 is expected to enhance commercial viability of both of them.

Mitsui, as a long time partner with QP, has commited to contribute to the development of the State of Qatar, especially in energy and natural resources industry since its participation in Qatargas 1, which was the first established LNG project in Qatar, followed by the participation in Qatargas 3 and the long-term purchase of condensate produced by Qatargas 3. By participating in the LR2 project, Mitsui will become more engaged in the condensate related business while contributing to the State of Qatar by helping to bring about further development of the nation's energy and other sectors.