An explosion at Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's main production site of liquefied natural gas (LNG), left 13 people dead and 66 dozens injuries as a result of a "technical accident". All casualties were from India and Pakistan, said Qatar's Energy Ministry Saad al-Kaabi (via Reuters), who said that the plant had been stopped since December 2025 due to urgent maintenance requirements, and was restarted only two days before the accident.
The shockwave of the explosion was felt more than 70 kilometres away, in central Doha, panicking residents. In March, Iranian strikes hit two gas-processing units in Ras Laffan, affecting about 17% of Qatar's LNG export capacity, with repairs expected to take five years, but leaving no injuries.
The Ministry said that there is no risk to the environment and the plant's export capabilities were unaffected.
While the explosion was a technical accident, according to the Ministry, and unrelated to Iran's attack in March, the accident shows the challenges by the Qatar to ramp up oil and gas production after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Liquefied natural gas operations are particularly dangerous because of the slow cooldowns to avoid thermal shock.
