UPDATE: Russia’s Novatek to launch construction of Kola Shipyard in 2017

(Adds details on Gydan project in last three paragraphs)

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 22 (PRIME) -- Russian independent gas producer Novatek plans to launch construction of a U.S. $500 million Kola Shipyard in the city of Murmansk in 2017, CEO Leonid Mikhelson told reporters Friday.

“We are doing preliminary design and engineering works. We are waiting for when the Belokamenka locality is no more a closed administrative-territorial formation, we have received all coordinations, and technical issues are being solved. We plan to engage in design this year and start construction next year. Construction will take about two years,” he said.

“Investments will stand at least $500 million. It is important that investments in the Kola Shipyard stand at about 2.5–4% of total investment in the whole project for construction of the LNG (liquefied natural gas) plant at the Gydan (Peninsula). The decision to place LNG plant’s capacities on platforms will save capital investments.”

Novatek is studying building LNG production capacities on the peninsula together with Norway’s Kvaerner, but there is still no decision on the shipyard’s ownership structure, he added.

The concept of the LNG plant on the Gydan Peninsula will be defined in several months. “We are now studying the issue of the line’s capacity – whether it will be at 5 million tonnes or 7 million tonnes – and which platform we will need. Kvaerner, KBR, Linde are involved in the project and make a serious amount of work. In about a month they will finish it, and then we will define the project’s concept,” Mikhelson said.

Novatek does not plan to revise the initial launch deadline for the project of 2022–2024. The company also does not plan to speed up the process of attraction of partners to the project.

“There are partners in which we are interested, we are setting up constant informational communication with them so that we are able to make suggestions to partners, which are well aware of the project and may study it fast, when time to make an investment decision comes,” he said.

End