Arctic LNG 2 enters into charter agreements on ice-class LNG tankers

PAO Novatek has announced that its joint venture Arctic LNG 2 entered into long-term charter agreements on 14 Arc7 ice-class LNG tankers with SMART LNG (a joint venture between Novatek and PAO Sovcomflot), with the construction of the LNG tankers to be built at the Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex.

The signing of the charter agreements allowed SMART LNG to conclude the corresponding contracts with the VEB.RF Group and Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex LLC for the construction and lease financing of these vessels.

In October 2019, the contracts for chartering, financing, and construction of a pilot ice-class LNG tanker to be built at the Zvezda shipyard were signed. Earlier, the participants of Arctic LNG 2 (Novatek, Total, CNPC, CNOOC, and the consortium of Mitsui and JOGMEC) in accordance with the Projects’ Sea Transportation Strategy, approved the construction of 15 Arc7 ice-class LNG tankers at Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex.

The construction of 15 state-of-the-art ice-class gas tankers ensures the core formation of the Arctic fleet for the Project which will allow the year-round transport of LNG along the Northern Sea Route to the Asia Pacific region, and provide an important stimulus to develop the Russian shipbuilding industry.

Source: LNG Industry Magazine