Qatargas train seven is expected to start production within a month's time, Qatar's  Oil Minister Abdullah Al-Attiyah told reporters on Thursday.

Qatar is the world's biggest exporter of LNG, or gas cooled to liquid form so it can be transported by tankers.

 'Train seven will start production in a month,' he said. 

He also said Qatar will go ahead with its delayed Barzan gas project to supply gas to the domestic market at a cost of $8.6 billion.

Qatar initially had held back on the project due to high construction costs in 2010, Al-Attiyah told reporters in Doha.

'We had to hold back because in 2010 the tender was for $11 billion, and now we managed to save $2.4-2.5 billion by having it this year,' he said.   

Initial talks took place in 2007 between Qatar Petroleum, which has a 93 percent stake, and oil major Exxon Mobil, which owns the remaining share.

'It took about 18 months from that point to finalize the deal,' said Al-Attiyah.

The project is expected to produce 1.4 billion cubic feet of North Field gas a day, which will be used to meet the growing demand of the domestic market, he added.   

'The first train will start in 2014 and the second in 2015.'    

Qatar produces about 2.8 billion cubic feet of gas per day for the domestic market and plans to increase that amount to 4 billion by 2015, Al-Attiyah said. - Reuters