An explosion and fire at the Barzan gas supply facility in Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City killed at least 13 people and injured 66 others on Sunday evening, according to the country’s energy minister. The blast occurred as workers were attempting to bring the plant back online after a prolonged shutdown, and was powerful enough to be felt across central Doha, more than 70 kilometres away.

Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad Sherida al-Kaabi told a press conference on Monday that all 13 dead held Indian and Pakistani nationalities, and that none of the 66 injured were in life-threatening condition. He described the incident as an industrial accident and explicitly ruled out sabotage or hostile action. Earlier on Monday, the interior ministry had reported 54 injured and 18 missing; the minister’s updated figures did not refer to any persons still unaccounted for, suggesting the earlier missing tally has been resolved.

The cause remains under formal investigation, with authorities attributing the explosion to a “technical accident” during the start-up of operations. The Barzan plant, which supplies pipeline gas to the domestic power and desalination sectors, had been deliberately shut down since December 2025 for urgent maintenance and was restarted only two days before the blast, al-Kaabi said. QatarEnergy, the state-owned operator, said emergency teams quickly contained the resulting fire and that no hazardous leaks were detected.

Ras Laffan is Qatar’s primary liquefied natural gas hub, and the Barzan facility sits within a complex that was struck by Iranian missiles in March during the regional conflict, sustaining damage that officials say will take years to repair. The minister stressed that Sunday’s explosion did not affect LNG export capabilities or the Ras Laffan port, and that there was no environmental risk. An investigation is ongoing, and authorities have not yet indicated when the damaged unit might resume operations.