LNG

Sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 has already despatched more LNG to China this year than in the whole of 2025. LNG Journal's own research shows 24 cargoes totalling 1.49 MMt sailed for China by 16 July on a sailed-date basis, against 17 cargoes and 1.05 MMt across all of last year, a total passed as early as 19 May.

PipeChina is gearing up to add a second regasification terminal for cargoes from Russia’s sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project. The newly built Longkou LNG terminal in Shandong province meant to receive shipments before October.

Sovcomflot's newly built Arc7 ice-class LNG carrier Alexey Kosygin has completed its first commercial voyage, delivering an LNG cargo from Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 terminal to a floating storage unit (FSU) off Murmansk.

“Full exports from Arctic LNG 2 would crash the TTF,” Energy Aspects warns, arguing European gas markets would not be able to absorb the wave of additional supply without requiring US LNG shut-ins to balance.

The US Trump administration has remained silent in the face of Russia delivering the sixth cargo from the sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project to China. “Higher volumes or shipments to other destinations could trigger a US response, though for now it is unlikely that any other country will take that risk,” said Rystad analyst Lu Ming Pang.

Traded LNG markets are hedged between two risks – winter weather and further shipments from Russia’s sanctioned Arctic LNG 2. Six more vessels are headed to China with estimated arrivals between now and early October, Energy Aspect understands.

Technip Energies, the leading Europe-based energy and liquefied natural gas project engineering company, forecast a strong LNG market in 2023 and beyond and reported high annual net profits as it advanced projects in Qatar and Mozambique and also planned to seek more mid-scale LNG plant contracts.

The Gazprom-run Sakhalin liquefied natural gas export plant in the Russian Far East has started maintenance work and has shut down one of its processing Trains.

Sakhalin Energy, the plant operating company, had originally planned for work to be done on both Trains at the same time, but logistical difficulties occurred caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting safety measures.

The main buyers of Sakhalin cargoes are Japanese, South Korean and Chinese energy companies.

The shareholders in the plant are Gazprom with 50 percent plus one share, Royal Dutch Shell with 27.5 percent and Japanese companies Mitsui and Co. and Mitsubishi Corp. with 12.5 percent and 10 percent respectively.

Under its new plans some scheduled maintenance work has now been postponed until 2021.

“Due to current economic downturn and the pandemic challenge, we had to modify the initial turnaround scope,” said a Sakhalin Energy statement.

“To ensure the safety of our people and reliable production, the company has decided to follow the original timeline, but shut down only one Train at the LNG plant,” the company added.

LNG production at the two-Train Sakhalin plant has remained at just over 11 million tonnes per annum in recent years. The plant was Russia's first and came on stream in 2009.

The newer Yamal LNG plant started up in 2017 with output of 16.5 MTPA from three Trains and is operated by independent Russian natural gas company Novatek.

A long-planned expansion at the Sakhalin plant and the construction of a third liquefaction Train has so far failed to take place.

However, Gazprom notes that regular de-bottlenecking and equipment adjustments over the past 11 years has seen output raised to more than 11 MTPA from the nameplate capacity of 9.6 MTPA.

LNG cargoes produced and marketed at Sakhalin are supplied on a free-on-board basis and shipped by the company’s LNG carriers, “Grand Elena”, “Grand Aniva” and “Grand Mereya”.

Two other vessels, the “Amur River” and the “Ob River” carriers are used by the company under long-term charter agreements.

The Russian Parliament has adopted amendments to the law on natural gas exporting, opening the way for further LNG developments, and follows big tax breaks recently brought in for oil and gas investments in Russia’s Arctic region.

Sovcomflot, the Russian shipping line with 16 liquefied natural gas carriers and an overall fleet of 147 vessels, returned to annual profit amid plans to expand its LNG carrier fleet and its number of LNG-powered tankers.