France's TotalEnergies on Saturday signed a new $1.5 billion deal to help expand Qatar's natural gas production as Europe scrambles to find new energy sources to replace Russian supplies.
But TotalEnergies chairman Patrick Pouyanne and Qatar Energy Minister Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi expressed surprise at reports that Germany was resisting 20-year contracts -- insisting that Europe must agree longer contracts to guarantee supplies.
The French energy giant will have a 9.3 percent stake in Qatar's North Field South project, part of the world's biggest natural gas reserves, Kaabi said at a signing ceremony.
Pouyanne said TotalEnergies would invest $1.5 billion in the new field.