Russia’s Sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 Raises Output to Record Levels

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Russia’s Sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 Raises Output to Record Levels

Russia’s sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project raised production to record levels during the last days of June as the facility appears to have resumed loading cargoes. Natural gas output at the Novatek PJSC-led facility averaged 14 million cubic meters a day on June 28 and June 29, according to a person with knowledge of the […]

Russia’s sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project raised production to record levels during the last days of June as the facility appears to have resumed loading cargoes.

Natural gas output at the Novatek PJSC-led facility averaged 14 million cubic meters a day on June 28 and June 29, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

That’s the highest daily level for the plant, historic data shows. Higher natural gas output doesn’t automatically indicate a hike in LNG production, but historically the plant produced more gas when it was able to load cargoes. In December 2023, when it was launched, Arctic LNG 2 pumped an average of 13.7 million cubic meters of gas a day.

The facility located above the Arctic Circle is key for Russia’s ambition to triple LNG production by 2030. Those plans were squeezed by international restrictions after the invasion of Ukraine, but a liquefied gas tanker appeared to load a cargo several days ago, suggesting Russia may be finding ways around the penalties.

Gas output at Arctic LNG 2 averaged 8.9 million cubic meters a day during most of June, compared with 9.4 million cubic meters a day the month before, the person said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public.

Novatek, the largest shareholder of Arctic LNG 2, and the plant’s operator didn’t immediately respond to requests for comments.

The Iris tanker — previously known as North Sky and blacklisted by the US, the EU and the UK — left the site Sunday. Its draft level, which the crew inputs manually, has increased, potentially indicating the tanker loaded a cargo there, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg.

The tanker is heading toward the Arctic port of Murmansk, where it’s expected to arrive July 2.

Novatek uses waters near Murmansk to transfer LNG cargoes from ice-class vessels to conventional tankers. Novatek’s sanctioned Saam floating LNG storage facility, previously used to store cargoes from Arctic LNG 2, is also located there.

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