NLNG Calls for Global Overhaul of LNG Contracts to Guard Against Geopolitical Risks
Kathy Kyari
NLNG has urged the international energy community to adopt a new model of collaboration to stabilise liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, improve affordability for developing nations, and protect energy expansion amid rising geopolitical tensions and trade disruptions.
The company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Philip Mshelbila, made the call while speaking on the panel “Energy Expansion in a Challenging Global Trade Environment” at the World LNG Summit & Awards in Istanbul, Turkey.
Mshelbila warned that the global energy landscape is at risk of deepening divides if structural challenges in LNG supply, pricing, financing, and decarbonisation are not urgently resolved. He said coordinated effort across the LNG value chain was now essential to prevent instability and ensure gas remains central to a lower-carbon future.
“In order to safeguard global energy security from the risks of geopolitics and unilateral (national and regional) policies and sanctions, LNG contracts must evolve from merely defining volume and price to actively managing sovereign risk, through diversification of supply sources, delivery routes and contract terms,” he said.
He noted that shifting market dynamics, particularly the 2022 supply shock had pushed buyers back into long-term commitments, even as short-term contracts remain in strong demand due to heightened global uncertainty.
Addressing how LNG can continue meeting rising energy demand, Mshelbila said availability, affordability, and decarbonisation must all be strengthened. Despite being widely viewed as a transition fuel, he argued that natural gas will remain relevant for decades, provided the industry secures more supply, reduces costs, and accelerates decarbonisation across the value chain.
Citing upcoming major capacity expansions in the United States, Qatar, and NLNG’s own Train 7 which will add eight million tonnes per annum, Mshelbila said supply growth is on track. However, he identified affordability as LNG’s biggest challenge, noting that high prices have repeatedly pushed emerging markets back to coal and other cheaper, more polluting energy sources.
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