Major construction work at the Qatargas 4 liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility and Pearl, the world's largest gas to liquids (GTL) plant, will be completed by year end, with production ramping up in 2011, Royal Dutch Shell said on Thursday.

Shell holds 30 per cent of the 7.8 million tonne per year LNG project which when completed will cement Qatar's position as the world's biggest LNG exporter with an annual production capacity to 77 mpta.

"Major construction at Pearl and Qatargas 4 will be completed by the end of this year with ramp up for both in 2011," Shell chief executive Peter Voser told journalists.

LNG production facilities, known as trains, take several weeks to ramp up production because miles of pipes have to cooled down before the gas can be chilled to liquid form.

Shell said in late 2009 it had delayed the start up of the $8 billion Qatargas 4 project to late 2010, because contractors were struggling to keep up with the pace of developments in Qatar's booming gas industry, with the first cargo pushed into 2011.

The delay helped reduce oversupply in the global LNG market in early 2010.
 State-run Qatar Petroleum owns 70 per cent of Qatargas 4.-Reuters