Novatek is gaining ground in the Arctic. Reviews: Yamal LNG, Russian gas company

The resource base for the Yamal LNG project is the Yuzhno-Tambeyskoye field, located in the northeast of the Yamal Peninsula on the coast of the Gulf of Ob. The proven and probable reserves of the field according to the international PRMS classification are estimated at 926 billion cubic meters. m of gas and 30 million tons liquid hydrocarbons. The design level of production is about 27 billion cubic meters. m of gas per year for at least 20 years.

The field development project provides for the drilling of 208 directional production wells with a horizontal ending (with a horizontal section length of at least 500 m) from 19 well pads.

The Arktika drilling rigs were designed and manufactured specifically for the project. The rigs are designed to operate in the difficult natural and climatic conditions of Yamal, they are completely protected from the winds, which ensures qualitatively different working conditions for personnel and continuity of drilling, regardless of weather conditions.

To improve the efficiency of field development, innovative and environmentally friendly technologies, equipment and materials are used. Well drilling is carried out using drilling fluids on a hydrocarbon (oil) basis, which makes it possible to preserve the natural reservoir properties of the reservoir.

LNG plant

An LNG plant with a capacity of 17.4 million tons per year is being built directly at the Yuzhno-Tambeyskoye field on the coast of the Gulf of Ob.

The construction uses a modular installation principle, which significantly reduces construction costs in the Arctic and optimizes the project schedule. The production complex will include four process lines for gas liquefaction. The first phase was launched in December 2017.

The hydrocarbon mixture from the wells is supplied to a single integrated complex for the treatment and liquefaction of natural gas.

At the input facilities of the complex, separation takes place, that is, mechanical impurities, water, methanol and condensate are separated from the gas. The inlet facilities include methanol regeneration and condensate stabilization units.

The separated gas enters the liquefaction process lines and sequentially undergoes purification from acid gases and traces of methanol, drying and removal of mercury, and extraction of liquefied hydrocarbon gases. Further, the purified gas is supplied for pre-cooling and liquefaction. A propane refrigeration circuit is used to pre-cool the gas, and a mixed refrigerant circuit is used for liquefaction. Finished LNG is stored in cryogenic tanks.

The integrated complex also includes liquefied hydrocarbon gas fractionation units, stable condensate and refrigerant storage parks, a 376 MW power plant, off-site engineering systems and flare installations.

LNG transportation

For the Yamal LNG project, special tankers of the reinforced ice class Arc7 (according to the Russian classification) have been designed and are being built, allowing year-round navigation without icebreaking assistance in the western direction and during the Arctic summer - in the eastern direction along the Northern Sea Route.

Russian and foreign classification societies and leading design and engineering institutes, shipyards and shipowners took part in the development of the Arctic tanker.

The tanker has a dual action system - the bow is adapted for navigation in open water and in thin ice conditions, and the stern is optimized for independent navigation in difficult ice conditions.

The main characteristics of the tanker "Arc7":

• cargo capacity is about 170 thousand cubic meters. m LNG;
• Power power plant 45 MW;
• Speed ​​in open water - 19.5 knots;
• Speed ​​when moving in ice 1.5 meters thick - 5.5 knots;
• The main type of tanker fuel is LNG, a dual-fuel diesel-electric propulsion system with three Azipod units is used.

Port

The federal property (construction customer FSUE “Rosmorport”) includes ice protection structures, operational water area, approach channels, vessel traffic control and navigation support systems, marine service buildings. Yamal LNG facilities include technological berths for transshipment of liquefied natural gas and gas condensate, ro-ro cargo berths, construction cargo berths, port fleet berths, storage facilities, administrative and economic zone, engineering networks and communications.

The construction of the port was carried out in two stages - preparatory and main. The preparatory stage is the construction of a cargo port for the acceptance of construction cargo and technological modules of the LNG plant. The second phase of the port is the construction of technological berths for the shipment of LNG and gas condensate.

The airport

For the purposes of the Yamal LNG Project, an international airport was built on the territory of the license area. The airport complex includes an ICAO category I airfield, a 2704 m x 46 m runway, hangars for aircraft, a service and passenger building, including the international sector. The airport operator is a 100% subsidiary of OAO Yamal LNG - OOO Sabetta International Airport. The first technical flight with an aircraft landing was performed on December 4, 2014, at this moment there are regular flights from Novy Urengoy, Moscow and Samara.

Sabetta settlement

The village of Sabetta, located on the eastern coast of the Yamal Peninsula, is the stronghold of the Yamal LNG project. The village has all the necessary infrastructure for the construction workers. Auxiliary facilities of the life support complex are being built: a fuel and lubricants storage warehouse, a boiler house, an energy center, canteens, first-aid posts, a laundry, baths, a sports complex, an administrative complex, a hotel, a fire station, sewerage and water treatment facilities, a warm parking lot for cars, food storage warehouses.

Competitive advantages

traditional high concentration reserves located on land

• well-studied geology and proven development technologies
• very low development and production costs
• high efficiency of the liquefaction process due to low average annual temperature
• access to the markets of Europe and the Asia-Pacific region
• government support, including tax incentives

Project infrastructure

The field development project provides for the drilling of 208 wells at 19 well pads. The gas produced at the field will be supplied to international market in the form of LNG, for which a gas liquefaction plant will be built, consisting of four technological lines. The first line of the plant with a capacity of 5.5 million tons of LNG per year was put into operation in December 2017. The infrastructure for loading LNG for export consists of an unloading rack with two berths in the port of Sabetta, equipped with ice protection facilities. Reinforced ice-class tankers Arc7 are used for LNG transportation.

Project implementation status

The final investment decision on the project was made in December 2013.

LNG production on the first production line of the plant started on December 5, 2017. Yamal LNG shipped the first batch of 170 thousand cubic meters of liquefied natural gas on December 8, 2017. In August 2018, Yamal LNG shipped the first batch of LNG after the launch of the plant's second process line. In November 2018, Yamal LNG produced the first LNG at the third production line.

14:14 — REGNUM

The other day Novatek renamed the Kola Shipyard company into Novatek-Murmansk.

"In February 2018, the group's subsidiary Kolskaya Verf LLC was renamed into Novatek-Murmansk LLC in order to bring it into line with the single Novatek brand, the company says.

The Novatek project is being implemented on the western coast of the Kola Bay near the village of Belokamenka in the Murmansk Region. As a result of the construction, a Center for the construction of large-tonnage offshore structures should appear.

On the Gydan Peninsula, Novatek is implementing a major Arctic LNG-2 project, which provides for the construction of an LNG plant on the basis of offshore terminals located on reinforced concrete gravity bases (GBS). Such foundations are used in areas where there is a constant, sufficiently strong force effect on the object - either seismic or ice, strong wind or tide. To implement this project, a large specialized shipyard is being created on the coast of the Kola Bay for the construction of large-capacity offshore structures, in particular GBS and topside modules. The use of this technology allows to reduce the cost of building a plant.

The construction of the center was started in the summer of 2017 and continues at a high pace.

The center is being built in stages - according to the Murmansk Region Development Corporation, the top-priority facilities include: a dry dock and all the facilities necessary to start construction of the first gravity-type foundation: concrete plants, reinforcement shops, formwork shops. Initially, the shipyard's products within the framework of the Arctic LNG-2 project will be three reinforced concrete offshore platforms with topsides installed on them - technological lines for liquefying gas. In fact, these are three autonomous plants with a capacity of more than 5.5 million tons per year of liquefied natural gas each. In the future, the capacities can be used for the production of offshore structures for various purposes for the development of the Arctic.

The shipyard is expected to start operating in 2019. Novatek promises to launch Arctic LNG-2 in 2023 with full capacity in 2026.

Specialists from both the Murmansk region and other regions of Russia were involved in the construction of the center. The nearest plans include the construction of a shift housing complex in Belokamenka to accommodate shipyard employees.

Among the contracting organizations, Murmansk residents have also noticed Chinese specialists. China is actively interested in the Arctic agenda in general and LNG production in Yamal in particular. The share capital of the already operating Yamal LNG complex, along with the French Total, includes Chinese companies: China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) (20%), Silk Road Fund (9.9%).

Arctic LNG-2 is being eyed by the Saudi state oil company Saudi Aramco and has already announced its intention to enter the equity capital, but the specific parameters of the deal are still unknown. This interest was not accidental - Saudi Arabia sees the project as a diversification of its gas business due to ongoing tensions with Qatar. The seriousness of the intentions is also evidenced by the fact that in December the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Saudi Aramco became the guest of honor at the ceremony of solemn shipment of the first batch of liquefied gas produced by Novatek in Yamal, despite the 30-degree frost.

Novatek for Last year actively manifested itself among the world's LNG players, both in Russian and in the world media as a competent player in the liquefied gas market. Despite the decline financial indicators over the past year, due to the high base effect, the company predicts sustainable development in the medium term.

In order for the first liquefied gas to be released from the new LNG terminal in 2023, it is necessary to find funding for the implementation of the project and to complete the Center for Large-tonnage Offshore Facilities in Belokamenka by 2023. As you can see, Novatek is moving progressively and on time in all areas.

Unlike other announced investment projects - the project of the shipyard of the onshore base for providing offshore hydrocarbon production of Rosneft in Roslyakovo, where work has not yet begun, and the project for the development of the Murmansk transport hub, where there are questions with investors and financing, the Novatek project is developing the most confidently.

Yamal LNG, controlled by NOVATEK, has begun production of liquefied natural gas at the first stage of its plant. The total capacity of the plant will exceed 16.5 million tons of LNG per year, and the project cost was $27 billion

Construction of the first line of the Yamal LNG plant for the production of liquefied natural gas in the village of Sabetta (Photo: Sergey Fadeichev / TASS)

The Yamal LNG plant, controlled by NOVATEK, has started the production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) on the first production line with a design capacity of 5.5 million tons of LNG per year, according to a statement from NOVATEK received by RBC.

On Friday, December 8, the first batch of LNG is scheduled to be loaded in the port of Sabetta, for this the LNG tanker Christophe de Margerie, named after the former head of Total (the corporation owns 18.9% of NOVATEK and 20% of Yamal LNG) will be used. who died in a plane crash at Vnukovo in October 2014.

“The start of production of liquefied natural gas at the first line of the plant is a major milestone in the development of the Yamal LNG project. We are opening a new page in the history of our company,” said Leonid Mikhelson, CEO and co-owner of NOVATEK (his words are quoted in the company’s announcement).

Yamal LNG is the first privately owned LNG plant in Russia to be built on the basis of the Yuzhno-Tambeyskoye field. Initially, it was assumed that it would have three stages with a total capacity of 16.5 million tons of LNG per year (5.5 million tons each): the second should be launched in the third quarter of 2018, the third - in early 2019. But in September 2017, Yamal LNG plans to build another line with a capacity of up to 1 million tons per year.

The project budget is estimated at $27 billion, of which about $12 billion are Chinese banks, and another 150 billion rubles. — FNB. 50.1% of the shares of Yamal LNG are owned by NOVATEK, 20% each by the French Total and the Chinese CNPC, and another 9.9% by the Chinese Silk Road Fund.

“We are proud that at the end of 2013 we made an investment decision on the timing [of the construction of the LNG plant] and capital investments in this project, and we are going within this framework,” Mikhelson at a briefing in Sabetta at the end of March, when this port the tanker "Christophe de Margerie" arrived. Then Russian President Vladimir Putin, who participated in the ceremony via video link, said that he was “surprised” by the pace of construction of the plant. “If we act in the same vein and at the same pace,<...>then, of course, Russia, without any doubt, not only can, but will become the largest producer of liquefied natural gas in the world, ”he promised that the state would contribute in every possible way to the development of the project.

Competitor of Gazprom

Gas from the new Yamal LNG plant, exempt from MET and duties, will compete in the European market with Russian pipeline gas, Nikolai Kislenko, Deputy Head of Department 123 of Gazprom, said at the Gas of Russia 2017 forum. “The same Yamal LNG means no export duty, no severance tax. And the gas that it will replace is the same [from which taxes and duties] Gazprom would transfer to the budget of the Russian state. That is, a clear loss of budgetary efficiency as such,” he said (cited by Interfax). According to his presentation, budget revenues from the mineral extraction tax and export duty from Gazprom's gas exports amount to more than 4.1 thousand rubles. for 1 thousand cubic meters The representative of NOVATEK does not comment on this.

Almost all Yamal LNG gas (more than 95%) has already been contracted, and the first batch of LNG will be sent to CNPC, at the end of October, NOVATEK CFO Mark Jetway during a teleconference with investors. “This is a very symbolic question. From our point of view, the first LNG tanker should be sent to CNPC in recognition of the company's contribution to the project and the importance of the Asia-Pacific market,” he said.

The launch of Yamal LNG is a landmark event for the Russian oil and gas industry, notes Valery Nesterov, senior analyst at Sberbank CIB, that this plant was built from scratch in extremely difficult conditions, without any infrastructure. The cost of gas production and LNG production is reduced due to the plant's proximity to the field and low temperatures, which reduce its energy demand, the expert says.

At current oil prices, the fate of this project would be less happy, Nesterov notes: the implementation of Yamal LNG began in 2013, when Brent oil cost more than $100 per barrel, and now it is $62.5. Therefore, the construction of the plant could be postponed, the expert notes. However, it is clear that the long-term contracts of Yamal LNG include an LNG price that provides sufficient high profitability this project, he admits. In January 2016, Michelson estimated the cost of gas supplied to the plant at less than $0.6 per 1 million British Thermal Units (MMBTU), indicating that the project was paying off even at "super low prices". But at that time, LNG in the Asian market (the key market for Yamal LNG) cost $6-6.5, and now it costs $9-10 per 1 MMBTU, Nesterov notes.

The opening of Yamal LNG will help NOVATEK in building new LNG plants and attracting partners, Andrey Polishchuk, an analyst at Raiffeisenbank, notes. If earlier NOVATEK had no experience in building such plants and the company could not demand much from its potential partners, now its position is much stronger, he notes: now the cost of a share in a new LNG project and a contribution to it authorized capital should increase significantly. NOVATEK plans to build a second LNG plant, Arctic LNG-2, on the basis of the Gydan fields, its launch is expected in 2022-2023, but the company has not yet accepted final decision about its construction.

As planned according to the schedule in 2017, a landmark event took place in early December, the first liquefied gas from Yamal LNG OJSC was shipped to the mainland. The button for the start of gas shipment was pressed by the main initiator and inspirer of this large-scale project - our President Putin V.V. Not everyone believed in this idea, but there were people who took a risk and eventually won - and Vladimir Vladimirovich said so at the final conference.

and reviews about "Yamal LNG" specialists

In December 2017, the first stage of the construction of the plant was launched, one more stage will be launched in 2018 and 2019. After that, the fourth will be built - completely on Russian technologies. According to experts, the demand for gas in the world will only grow, and in 20 years consumption will grow by approximately 40%, and specifically LNG - by 70%. Interest in liquefied gas is so great that the chief director of the most powerful national Saudi oil company Saudi Aramco flew to launch the first stage. What might interest a company from Saudi Arabia, the main supplier of gas in the world in the north of Russia? Of course, our next possible gas project in the Arctic is Arctic LNG-2. The Saudis do not hide their interest in cooperation in financing and developing the field. The launch of an expensive, unique complex in the town of Yar-Sale in Yamal is an epoch-making event on a global scale. It is no secret that our country, our strategic oil and gas companies are subject to sanctions, including on technology and the supply of equipment. It is all the more valuable that in such harsh conditions the first phase of the project was completed on time and, surprisingly for our country, the initial estimated cost has not been exceeded. This caused a lot of positive feedback about Yamal LNG. By the way, the Americans have not yet been able to launch a similar project in Alaska.

History of OAO Yamal LNG

Yamal and its adjacent territories are leaders in Russia in terms of explored gas reserves. Today, more than 20% of Russian gas is located in Yamal, so local deposits are destined to be the main areas for the extraction of this fuel. 12 years ago, Yamal LNG OJSC was established, where the shareholders were Novatek - 60% of the shares, Total - 20% of the shares and CNPC - 20% of the shares. Novatek recently sold a 9.9% stake to the Silk Road Fund, but retained a controlling stake of 50.1%. The main construction began in 2012. The total investment for all three phases of the complex is $27 billion.

Technologies of the integrated scheme for the production, liquefaction and sale of gas

Yamal LNG contractors implemented a comprehensive approach to the project of a Russian gas producing company. In Sabetta, a tiny settlement of the local Nenets people, the first shift workers appeared in 1980. But the development of the village and adjacent territories received only with the development of the project. They began to build a seaport, a gas liquefaction plant, a modern village of Sabetta itself, where more than 20,000 people already live.

Gas from wells through pipes laid above the ground enters the gas liquefaction plant. At the plant, gas condensate (liquid impurities), methanol and other foreign fractions are separated from the gas. Purified, ideally dry gas goes to liquefaction and then through pipes to storage facilities and tanks. There are four of them, 160,000 cubic meters each. The heart of each stage of the plant is a cryogenic plant (it directly liquefies gas) - the most complex equipment, with more than 40 kilometers of pipes alone. Gas condensate also finds its use, it is sent to special containers and the corresponding tankers transport the condensate to consumers.

Seaport of the company "Yamal LNG"

A unique sea port of Sabetta has been built for the shipment of liquefied gas. It is a key link in the technological chain and the main base of the transport hub for the development of oil and gas fields in Yamal and the Gulf of Ob. The port has already provided navigation throughout the year. The port of the Yamal LNG company Sabetta is the gateway to the Arctic, it is a key link in the construction of the facility under construction.

Transportation of liquefied natural gas

According to reviews, when Yamal LNG reaches its design capacity, it should ship 16.5 million tons of liquefied gas (5.5 million tons each line). To transport such impressive volumes of gas, a fleet of unique vessels will be created from fifteen specially designed reinforced icebreaking tankers with a capacity of 173,000 cubic meters each. A contract for the supply of gas carriers worth more than $5 billion was signed with shipbuilders from South Korea. The lead tanker, which has already loaded and left for customers, bears the name of Christophe de Mangenie, the name of the president of Total, who tragically died in 2014. In many respects, this is the merit of the president of the company - that, despite the sanctions, the French Total remained in the project. Their knowledge, experience and technology are very important in construction. According to the plan, at the end of 2018, ten gas carriers should be loaded monthly. The loading time of one vessel is about 20 hours.

Main consumers

Under the contract, part of the gas will be purchased by the founders joint-stock company- by Total and CNPC. Among the buyers: "daughter" of Gazprom, Singaporean, Spanish, British, Indian, French companies. Moreover, 96% of future supplies have already been contracted, and it is known that 70-80% of liquefied gas will go to the countries of the Asia-Pacific region. So far, Russia has a small share in the global LNG trade. But, if all the planned projects are implemented, we will become a significant player in the market, and we will be reckoned with. We will not reach the level of the world's largest LNG supplier - Qatar, but we are quite capable of becoming one of the world leaders. The President of Novatek said that the launch of Arctic LNG-2 in 2022-2023 is realistic.

Arctic deposits stimulate the development of Russia

According to experts, the development of fields on the Yamal Peninsula, the Gulf of Ob, will be a driver for the growth of the Russian economy. As Mendeleev said in the 19th century: "The wealth of Russia will grow in Siberia," so now the wealth of our country will grow in the Arctic. After all, the development of these territories will require scientific research and technology from many research institutes throughout the country, and many enterprises and companies in Russia will be loaded with orders. Moreover, under the conditions of sanctions, there is a forced import substitution, which ultimately turns out to be good for us.

Special construction technologies

The stages of the construction of the Yamal LNG plant show that, despite the fact that sanctions certainly affect financing and technological support, Russia found alternative financing and was able to independently create necessary equipment. In order to mount and run a plant in permafrost conditions, unique technologies are required. Even the attracted foreign experts in the construction of such projects were often unable to help. The plant is assembled from giant modules, there are more than 300 of them. Modules are created on the mainland, their weight reaches tens and hundreds of tons. These superblocks are transported by special vessels; a heavy-duty berth has been created for unloading, which can withstand a load of more than 10 tons per 1 sq. meter. A plant is assembled from the modules on site. Due to the permafrost, the entire installation of the modules is carried out on sites installed on piles, going down tens of meters.

Since there is no communication with the mainland in Yamal, except by sea and air, everything here is autonomous. There should be own generation of energy and heat. A GTPP with a capacity of 370 MW of electricity and 150 MW of thermal energy is under construction. Even the trains that will soon go on railway to Sabetta, will be the only ones in the world using LNG as fuel.

Sabetta - the village of shift workers

Today, in terms of population and living conditions, Sabetta is no longer a village, but a city. Initially, the name of the settlement was Sabeta (with one "t"), then it was somehow Italianized. In the 1990s, when the number of drilling and exploration works was greatly reduced, the population of the village fell to a few dozen people. But since 2012, with the start of the construction of the Yamal project, the population has grown rapidly, and the village has turned into a city. In the conditions of permafrost, decent conditions have been created for the work and rest of the employees of the gas production company. Most of the people who live here work. on a rotational basis, and living conditions are specific: work-home, work-home. The house is a hostel with rooms for 4-8 people. Living conditions are decent, spacious canteens, large sports and gyms for those who still have the strength after a busy shift. For all strict dry law, violated - "goodbye" to the mainland.

Prospects for Yamal LNG and other Arctic projects

The events taking place now in Yamal occur once in a hundred years. The significance of the development of the project is comparable to the development of Western Siberia 50-60 years ago. It is necessary to take into account the ever-increasing role of LNG in the global gas balance. Due to the fact that the fastest growing markets are located in the countries of the Asia-Pacific region, it is often simply impossible to organize pipeline gas supplies to these countries. According to experts, if all the plans outlined by our gas producers come true, by 2030 Russia's share of the global LNG market could reach 15%. And all the Yamal fields can reach the volume of 70 million tons of liquefied gas. Even now, reviews of Yamal LNG are the most enthusiastic. According to the project, in a few years it will reach a cargo turnover of 30 million tons. Already today, thanks to the construction of a year-round port on Yamal, the volume of traffic along the northern sea route has doubled. In addition to the products of the gas industry, the port will also handle other cargoes needed for the northern territories. Of course, it will also be used in the interests of the Russian Ministry of Defense, that is, it is of strategic importance.

Shift jobs

The Yamal LNG plant is developing and, of course, specialists are required for the production being built. Engineers, workers, operators of various specialties are required. Wage starts from 85,000 rubles, for leading specialists - 2-3 times more. Contacts "Yamal LNG": Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Yamal district, the village of Yar-Sale.