Novatek's LNG Construction Center starts building third train for Arctic LNG 2 plant

MURMANSK. Oct 18 (Interfax) - Novatek's LNG Construction Center has begun building the third train of the Arctic LNG 2 liquefied natural gas plant, Murmansk Region Governor Andrei Chibis said on Tuesday.

"Construction has already begun on the third train. The concrete foundation is being poured. Already 1,700 cubic meters of concrete has been poured and more than 1,500 tonnes of rebar has been installed," Chibis said on his Telegram channel after a meeting of the supervisory board of the Capital of the Arctic priority development area.

Novatek reported in August that the first train of the Arctic LNG 2 plant had been installed on a prepared offshore platform at the Utrenny terminal on the Gydan Peninsula. The train with capacity to produce 6.6 million tonnes of LNG per year was towed from the LNG Construction Center in Murmansk Region to Gydan in 22 days.

The train consists of a concrete gravity-based structure with LNG and gas condensate storage tanks, and topside modules with the equipment to produce and offload LNG and stable gas condensate.

Novatek CEO Leonid Mikhelson said construction of the second train for Arctic LNG 2 is at an advanced stage and work is beginning on the concrete foundation for the third train.

The Arctic LNG 2 project involves the construction of three LNG production trains with capacity of 6.6 million tonnes per year each. Novatek owns 60% of the project. France's TotalEnergies , China's CNPC and CNOOC, and a consortium of Japan's Mitsui & Co. and JOGMEC each hold 10% stakes in the project.

Mikhelson said earlier that the first train of the plant will be launched in 2023 and is expected to reach design capacity in the first quarter of 2024. The second train is expected to be completed in 2024 and the third in 2026.

The resource base for the project is the Salmanovskoye (Utrennyeye) field on the Gydan Peninsula.