Mitsui O.S.K. Lines has announced that on January 26 it agreed to participate in cargo transport for the Arctic LNG 2 Project on Russia’s Gydan Peninsula, and signed, through an MOL subsidiary, a charter contract for a newbuilding ice-breaking tanker with the project company, whose largest shareholder is Russia’s Novatek.
Vessel particulars:
- Length: 214 m,
- Breadth: 34 m,
- Cargo hold capacity: 54,800 m3,
- Ice Class: Specifications RMRS ARC7,
- Polar Service Temperature: -50 degrees Centigrade,
- Maximum icebreaking capacity: 1.5 m thick at ahead / 1.8 m at astern with icebreaker bow structure and 2-shaft POD propeller.
This contract follows the October 2020 signing of charter contracts for three ice-breaking LNG vessels to serve for the same project.
The vessel will be constructed at Guangzhou Shipyard International Company Limited, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited (CSSC), and is slated for delivery in 2024.
The vessel will transport condensate from the LNG/condensate plant inside the Arctic Circle on the Gydan Peninsula, mainly to Europe (westbound) via the Northern Sea Route.
MOL has operated three ice-breaking LNG carriers on the Northern Sea Route for the Yamal LNG Project since March 2018. In addition, three ice-breaking LNG carriers for the Arctic LNG 2 Project are scheduled to go into service in 2023.