Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) has signed a Letter of Intent with Russia’s State Transport Leasing Company (GTLK), a state owned leasing company under the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation, for the potential acquisition of 49% shares in the FSU (Floating Storage Unit) owner companies currently 100% owned by GTLK, in relation to the LNG transshipment projects in Kamchatka and Murmansk.
The above-mentioned FSU owner companies have earlier entered into bareboat charter agreements with Arctic Transshipment LLC, a joint venture between Novatek and TotalEnergies S.E., that will provide transshipment services to Novatek’s LNG projects by reloading LNG cargoes from ice-class LNG carriers onto conventional LNG tankers.
Two FSUs with a world’s largest storage capacity of about 360,000m3 will be placed one in the Bechevinskaya Bay in Kamchatka and the other in the Ura Bay in Murmansk region. The two FSUs are currently under construction at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Ltd.. Once the construction is completed, the FSUs will be towed to Kamchatka and Murmansk to be placed at their sites. MOL have been supporting the construction from the technical and engineering perspective, in particular the basic design, plan approval and site supervision works.
By transporting LNG via Northern Sea Route and by transshipping at Kamchatka and Murmansk, it is expected to reduce voyage costs and greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, securing LNG at a location close to a point of consumption is believed to increase security and reliability of energy supply. Furthermore, ensuring steady access to energy resources in the Russian Arctic region should contribute to stable energy supply to Japan.
MOL will contribute to stable LNG transportation by providing a wide variety of services, from icebreaking LNG carriers which transport LNG from loading ports in Russian Arctic to these LNG transshipment terminals, and to conventional LNG carriers which deliver LNG from the transshipment terminals to discharging ports, the company said in a statement.