DUBAI - Industries Qatar (IQ) has bought Qatar Petroleum's 25% stake in Qatar Fertiliser Co (QAFCO) for $1 billion, the company said, making IQ the 100% owner of the world’s largest single site urea producer.

Industries Qatar shares were up 6.9% to 10.1 riyals in early trade on Monday, trimming their year-to-date loss to 2.2%.

QAFCO has entered into a new gas sales and purchase agreement (GSPA) with Qatar Petroleum (QP) with effect from August 1 until December 31, 2035, covering the gas requirements of its units.

The deal provides QP with cash to pursue investments.

QP said in May its plans to sharply expand its liquefied natural gas (LNG) capacity by the middle of the decade remained on track.

It wants to lift its LNG output to around 110 million tonnes per annum by 2024 from about 77 mtpa currently in the first phase of its expansion.

(Reporting by Saeed Azhar and Maqsood Alam; editing by Jason Neely) ((Saeed.Azhar@thomsonreuters.com; +971 44536787; Reuters Messaging: saeed.azhar.reuters.com@reuters.net))