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Arctic
N
ovatek, Total, China National Petroleum Corp.
and Silk Road Fund are partners in the Yamal LNG
project, which aims to exploit the gas reserves of the
South Tambey Fields in the Yamal Peninsula, Russia. The LNG
plant is the first to be built inside of the Arctic Circle and is
located North of the 70° latitude line, on the West bank of the
Ob River Estuary in Sabetta. When complete, the complex
will cover 180 ha., with gas from 208 wells on 19 well pads,
supplying three liquefaction trains with a combined capacity
of 16.5 million tpy. Four 80 m dia. x 52 m high (160 000 m
3
)
tanks, plus three 50 000 m
3
condensate units, will store
LNG and condensate. The project has its own international
airport and sea port, with a cargo terminal and LNG trestles
serving 15 LNG ice-breaker tankers, condensate ships
and 11 conventional LNG tankers. Furthermore, the project is
located deep within the Arctic, in a region that is icebound
for seven to nine months per year, and where winter
temperatures can fall below -50°C.
Frederic Hannon, Total, France, and Kirill Bogdanovskiy, Yamal LNG,
Russia, explain the challenges faced when trying to ensure the safe and
reliable transportation of LNG through the Northern Sea Route from the
Yamal LNG plant in Russia.
Arctic
Navigating the
