Yamal Gas Rush: Novatek to Launch its Third LNG in 2022
Novatek trains (Photo: Novatek)
Inspired by its success, Novatek takes another step in the rush for natural gas resources in the Russian Arctic.
On May 21, Novatek announced that its third major LNG plant in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District will be launched in 2022. The final investment decision is to be reached later this year.
The construction of the new LNG site will be done by the Ob LNG LLC (“OOO Obsky SPG”), a subsidiary enterprise of Novatek’s subsidiary Novatek-Yurkharovneftegaz, registered in January 2019.
The plant will be located close to the port of Sabetta, the same area as the Yamal LNG launched in 2017. The Ob LNG will be based on the gas reserves of the Verkhnetiuteyskoye and Zapadno-Seyakhinskoye fields, acquired by Novatek-Yurkharovneftegaz in September 2017 for a period of 27 years. Together these fields hold 157 billion cubic meters.
According to the Russian newspapers Vedomosti and Kommersant, the General Director of the Ob LNG Ltd Vladimir Khurtin pointed out this Tuesday that the Ob LNG project will solely be based on Russian investments and technologies, including Novatek’s own so-called “Arctic Cascade” liquefaction technology. The Ob LNG site will comprise three liquefaction trains, each producing around 1,6 million tons annually.
The first train of the Ob LNG is due by the end of 2022, the other two are scheduled for summer 2023. In contrast to the Arctic LNG 2 with its liquefaction volume of 19,8 million tons, the projected modest outcome of 4,8 million tons of the Ob LNG has to do with the limited capacity of gas turbines currently available on the domestic market.
According to Kommersant, the first liquefaction train fully based on Russian equipment with a delivery capacity of 0,9 million tons per year will be launched this year within the Yamal LNG project.
Alongside Ob LNG project, Novatek is currently preparing for setting up its Arctic LNG 2 plant on the Gydan peninsula. Earlier this week, HNN reported that Novatek signed a contract with a UK-based company TechnipFMC on engineering, procurement, supply, construction and commissioning of an integrated LNG facility.
Read also: Novatek Allowed to Operate Foreign LNG Carriers on Northern Sea Route