Page 10 - FSUOGM Week 16 2021

FSUOGM PIPELINES & TRANSPORT FSUOGM

Zvezda begins work on third LNGC

RUSSIA RUSSIA’S Zvezda shipyard began construction Novatek secured all necessary financing
last week on its third ice-class Arctic LNG carrier for the fleet’s development last Septem-
The vessels will serve (LNGC), which will be put to use at Novatek’s ber. The company’s joint venture with state
the Arctic LNG-2 Arctic LNG-2 liquefaction project. shipowner Sovcomflot obtained the fund-
project. Zvezda has received orders to build 15 such ing from state development bank VEB.RF.
vessels for Arctic LNG-2, whose three 6.6mn Chartering arrangements were also finalised
tonne per year (tpy) trains are expected online at that point.
in 2023, 2024 and 2026. Russia has never before Russia is eager to develop its domestic ship-
built such tankers. It cut the steel for the first building sector, to support its economy and
LNGC in the fleet last November, and for the sec- reduce reliance on foreign shipyards in strategi-
ond in January this year. The first five tankers are cally important sectors like oil and gas. In addi-
due to enter service in March-December 2023, tion to LNGCs, Zvezda is also building a series of
followed by five more in September-December crude oil tankers for Russian customers.™
2024, and the remaining five in September-De-
cember 2025.
Zvezda is relying on technical support from
South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries. The
shipyard is owned by Russian state concerns
Rosneft, Rosneftegaz and Gazprombank.
The LNGCs in the fleet will each have a stor-
age capacity of 172,600 cubic metres, and will
also use LNG as fuel. They are 300 metres in
length and 49 metres in width, and are capable
of passing through ice up to 2.1 metres thick
without assistance.
French engineering group GTT is providing
liquefaction technology for the vessels, while
Saphir, a joint venture between Rosneft and
General Electric, is supplying their rudders and
propellers.

Gazprom books all Ukrainian

transit capacity in May

UKRAINE GAZPROM has booked all additional Ukrain- and had to buy an addition 10 bcm over the year.
ian transit capacities offered for May, according This year it appears that Gazprom may transit
Europe is dramatically to the results of the monthly Regional Book- more than the 40 bcm – equivalent to 109 mcm
increasing its ing Platform (RBP) auction, Interfax Ukraine per day – it has under the terms of the new deal.
consumption. reported on April 19. Adding in the additional 15mcm booked at this
Gazprom booked all the addition 15mn cubic week’s auction the average daily volume rises to
metres per day offered by the Gas Transmission 124 mcm, according to Interfax Ukraine.
System Operator of Ukraine (GTSO) following In January 2021, the company transported
on from having booked an additional 14.2 mcm 124.51 mcm per day on average through
per day in February, March and April. Ukraine, in February 104 mcm, and in March
Under the terms of a new gas transit deal 119.5 mcm.
signed at the last moment in December 2019, Europe is currently dramatically increasing
Gazprom had to pay for 45bn cubic metres gas its gas consumption. Global supplies of liquefied
transit in 2020, 40 bcm this year and 35 bcm in natural gas (LNG) and pipeline gas from Russia
the next two years, even if it sends less physical are at their highest levels, but for the present this
gas through the pipelines. does not make it possible to start mass pumping
Last year due to heightened demand and an of gas into underground storage facilities to pre-
especially cold winter Gazprom transited 55 bcm pare for next winter. ™

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 16 21•April•2021