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From force majeure to restart: the engineering and project delivery priorities after disruption to LNG infrastructure
14/4/2026
10 min read
Feature
Force majeure was declared by several Middle East oil and gas suppliers in the wake of damage received during the early stages of the US/Israel-Iran war. The term is used when conflict, physical damage or a major external event interrupts supply. It can trigger contractual protections, explain missed cargoes and provide a legal frame for disruption. But in LNG, force majeure is only the beginning of the story. The real test starts immediately afterwards, when operators, engineers and project teams have to answer a much harder question: what does it actually take to bring damaged infrastructure back safely, credibly and sustainably into service? Framing an answer is Aghalar Gasimov MEI, Technical Project Interface Leader for North Field Production Sustainability COMP-2, QatarEnergy LNG.
The question of how to restore damaged infrastructure matters far beyond one terminal or one country. LNG security is now deeply connected to wider energy security. When liquefaction, storage, loading, utilities or export routes are disrupted, the issue does not remain a local operating problem for very long. It quickly becomes a supply issue, then a market issue, and very often a geopolitical one. While much of the public discussion still focuses on lost volumes, contractual declarations and nameplate capacity, those points do not explain the real challenge of recovery. Restart is where the true resilience of LNG infrastructure is tested.
The first principle of recovery after a major disruption should never be production. The first priority is control. Before anyone starts speaking seriously about restarting trains, the operator needs confidence that people are safe, the site is stable, hazards are contained and damaged systems are properly isolated. This sounds obvious, but in large industrial facilities, especially those with significant market importance, pressure to discuss restart can begin almost immediately. In practice, that pressure has to be resisted until there is a credible picture of plant condition.
The first 24 to 72 hours are therefore decisive. During that period, the focus is not output. It is emergency response, site accountability, shutdown verification, electrical and process isolation where needed, confirmation of containment, assessment of fire and gas exposure, and the creation of an early but disciplined damage picture. It is also the moment when leadership quality becomes visible. Senior management needs enough information to set direction, but not so much fragmented noise that the organisation starts moving in different directions.