Gazprom says prepares tender for contractor of Sakhalin-2 3rd line

MOSCOW, Feb 26 (PRIME) -- Russian gas giant Gazprom is preparing a tender to build a third gas liquefaction line of the Sakhalin-2 liquefied natural gas (LNG) plans, Gazprom Export CEO Yelena Burmistrova said on Tuesday during the company’s investor day.

“We have finished development and coordination of project documentation for the project to construct the third technological line of the Sakhalin-2. We are now preparing a tender to choose a contractor for construction. The launch is scheduled for 2023–2024,” she said.

The combined portfolio of LNG projects will have exceeded 6 million tonnes by 2020, growing from 4 million tonnes in 2018, she said.

“Over the years of our work on the market, we managed to create a diversified trade portfolio (of LNG supplies)…Gazprom Group is constantly working on expansion of long-term LNG sources in its trade portfolio. This year gas from the (Sakhalin-2) project in Sakhalin was expanded by volumes of the Yamal LNG project and the project of a floating LNG plant in Cameroon,” she said.

But Gazprom sees no threat to its position of natural gas exporter on the European gas market from international LNG producers, Oleg Aksyutin, head of the company’s prospective development department, said. In 2018, Gazprom’s gas exports to Europe reached 201.8 billion cubic meters, which is three times higher than the combined LNG exports of all companies in the world.

Domestic gas production in Europe is falling, its LNG regasification terminals are under-loaded, and its demand in natural gas may rise by at least 85 billion cubic meters by 2035, or by as high as 130 billion cubic meters a year until 2035, Aksyutin said.

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