Moscow – Sovcomflot, through a joint venture with NYK, has signed long-term time-charter contracts with NOVATEK Gas and Power Asia, a subsidiary of PAO NOVATEK, for four new 174.000 cub. metres LNG carriers.
The ceremony was held on 30 September via videoconference and was attended by: Sovcomflot’s President & CEO Igor Tonkovidov, Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of PAO NOVATEK Evgeniy Ambrosov, Chief Executive of Energy Division at NYK Akira Kono.
The new gas carriers will load cargoes produced in the Arctic projects of PAO NOVATEK at two FSU’s (floating storage units), which will be located near Murmansk in the west and Kamchatka at the eastern end of the Northern Sea Route, to provide LNG shipments to final buyers in Europe and Asia, as well as for regular trade operations in the global market.
Sovcomflot and NYK, through a joint venture (50/50 share), have been selected to contract the vessels following a tender process launched earlier this year.
The vessels will feature a modern design that meets the latest environmental requirements. The propulsion system, a low-speed X-DF dual-fuel diesel engine with superior fuel-consumption efficiency, is able to operate on boil-off gas stored in the cargo tank. Each LNG carrier will be equipped with a membrane-type tank of an advanced GTT Mark III Flex cargo containment system, which has insulating materials to suppress the boil-off rate up to 0,085 % per day and minimize cargo losses during transportation. A re-liquefaction unit onboard each ship will return gas to the cargo tank.
Sovcomflot’s President & CEO Igor Tonkovidov noted:
We are grateful to our partners in NOVATEK for their trust in us and appreciation of services delivered by Sovcomflot – a global maritime provider, providing offshore oil and gas transportation for Russian and international charterers.
“Sovcomflot’s development strategy envisages further expansion of its industrial business segment, which is a guarantee of steady income from fleet operations. The newly built gas carriers will meet all the current environmental requirements and will be compliant with the most stringent IMO rules and will contribute to further development of the Russian LNG export to the global markets.
The contracts signed are an important step in the development of our cooperation with NYK – a long-term partner of Sovcomflot. Together we are already implementing two LNG transportation projects – Sakhalin 2 and Tangguh.”
More than 40 ships of Sovcomflot to use LNG as the main fuel in 2025
On another side, Sovcomflot is building up the share of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the total volume of fuel consumed by the company’s fleet, Sergey Popravko, Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, Sovcomflot, as saying at the Capital Markets Day held by SCF Group in Moscow.
While 16% of the company’s ships were powered by LNG by the end of 2020, more than 40 ships will use LNG as the main fuel by 2025, said the speaker.
Apart from the transition to LNG, Sovcomflot is applying other technological solutions to mitigate the environmental footprint. Methods reducing the resistance between the ship’s hull and seawater let save 5-10% of fuel. Optimization of bow/hull shape – from 2% to 20%. Speed optimization along the route – from 2% to 50%
About: SCF
PAO Sovcomflot (MOEX: FLOT) is one of the world’s leading energy shipping companies, specializing in the transportation of liquefied gas, crude oil, and petroleum products, as well as the servicing of offshore oil and gas production. As of the date of this release, the Group’s fleet comprises 136 vessels with a total deadweight of 11.7 million tonnes, including vessels owned through joint ventures. About 80 vessels have an ice-class.
SCF is involved in servicing large oil and gas projects in Russia and around the world: Sakhalin-1; Sakhalin-2; Varandey; Prirazlomnoye; Novy Port; Yamal LNG, and Tangguh (Indonesia). The Group is headquartered in St. Petersburg, with offices in Moscow, Novorossiysk, Murmansk, Vladivostok, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, London, Limassol, and Dubai.
SCF currently has 16 gas carriers in operation, with a further 25 vessels under construction, including the latest vessels mentioned in this release. The Group has been an independent owner and operator of LNG carriers since 2006 and was the first Russian company to successfully enter this premium segment of the global shipping market. Amongst the key charterers of the gas fleet are: Arctic LNG-2; Gazprom; Total; Sakhalin Energy; Shell; Yamal LNG; Sibur, and Tangguh LNG.
As of 30.09.2021 future contracted revenue of PAO Sovcomflot stands at USD 24.4 billion.
