Page 8 - MEOG Week 36 2022
P. 8
MEOG PIPELINES & TRANSPORT MEOG
Markets track Iranian-Russian
plan to dominate global LNG supply
IRAN ENERGY markets are watching for progress, or finance would be drawn from the recent $40bn
otherwise, with a plan outlined by Iranian and Gazprom-National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) oil
Russian officials to work their way towards Iran and gas deal signed as a memorandum of under-
and Russia achieving dominance on the global standing (MoU). Iran and Russia, meanwhile,
LNG market, with a planned refining and export are continuing with efforts to bring Qatar firmly
hub on Iran’s Gulf of Oman (Indian Ocean) into their planned ‘Gas OPEC’ alliance.
island of Kish key to the ambition. Iran holds the second largest gas reserves in
Iran’s Petroleum Minister, Javad Owji, has the world (33.8 trillion cubic metres), and Russia
increasingly identified Kish, located off the the largest (48 tcm).
southwestern coastal province of Hormozgan NIOC says Kish will source growing amounts
near the entrance to the Persian Gulf, as criti- of gas from the North Pars gas field (1.67 tcm
cal in the project, given the Indian Ocean offers of reserves) and South Pars gas field (14 tcm of
direct access both East and West. reserves), plus from other gas fields.
Developing the LNG project at Kish, also If Iran can move into a new sanctions-free
increasingly important to Iran’s high-value era, work on establishing floating LNG (FLNG)
petrochemical production plans, could cost terminals (FLNGs), with storage and re-gasifica-
around $25bn, according to briefings given to tion facilities, especially in and around continen-
Iranian media by Owji. Much of the required tal Europe, would also be stepped up.
FINANCE & INVESTMENT
Emirati firm reportedly bids for
Shell’s stake in Russian oil project
UAE A little-known Dubai-based logistics company €150mn ($149mn) for Shell’s stake in Salym
called Wellnord is reportedly prepared to buy Petroleum. By any calculation, this is a signifi-
Shell’s 50% stake in its Salym Petroleum Devel- cant devaluation of its pre-war value. The project
opment joint venture with Russia’s Gazprom produced 118,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil in
Neft, the Moscow-based Kommersant newspa- 2021, which at average oil prices that year would
per reported on September 2. have earned Shell $1.5bn in revenues.
Shell vowed to withdraw from the Russian According to the newspaper, Shell has made
oil industry in the wake of Moscow’s invasion several attempts to sell the stake in Salym Petro-
of Ukraine in late February, but has had difficult leum and there were a number of interested par-
offloading assets, especially since Russian Pres- ties. As an existing partner, Gazprom Neft has a
ident Vladimir Putin issued a decree in early pre-emptive right to buy the interest, but such
August preventing foreign companies from a deal would be prohibited under EU sanctions
divesting shares in what are considered strategic against the Russian company.
enterprises. Meanwhile, Shell is yet to reveal whether it
Comprising several large oilfields in Russia’s will take a stake in a new Russian-backed entity
oil-producing heartland of Khanty-Mansiysk that will operate the Sakhalin-2 LNG plant in
in Western Siberia, Salym Petroleum was first the Russian Far East – the company’s other main
developed with Shell’s involvement in the early asset in the country. Shell had a 27.5% interest in
2000s. Gazprom Neft accused Shell of inter- the previous operating company, and was invited
rupting the project’s operations and has asked by the Russian government to assume the same
a Russian court to freeze the oil major’s share, position at the new one. The other foreign part-
Kommersant reported in August. The joint ven- ners in Sakhalin-2, Japan’s Mitsui and Mitsub-
ture is due to be re-registered to Russian jurisdic- ishi, have both said they will participate in the
tion from the Netherlands, following the court’s new operator.
decision. Shell was able to divest its retail fuel and lubri-
Kommersant cited sources on September cants business in Russia to private local producer
2 as saying that Wellnord had filed a bid to pay Lukoil in May, for an undisclosed sum.
P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 36 07•September•2022
