Gazprom, Sovcomflot discuss cooperation in LNG marine shipping

The heads of Gazprom and Sovcomflot (SCF), the Russian shipping company, on Tuesday held a working meeting to discuss prospects for cooperation in the marine shipping of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the energy hungry Asia-Pacific markets, the Russian gas giant said in a statement.

During the meeting, Alexey Miller, chairman of Gazprom’s management committee and Sergey Frank, director general of Sovcomflot addressed the prospects for SCF to participate in tenders for the charter of ice-breaking LNG carriers to be utilized by Gazprom.

The LNG will be included in the mix of hydrocarbons shipped to Asia-Pacific via the Northern Sea Route (NSR), a shipping lane from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean which runs through the Russian Arctic.

It was noted that energy resources were shipped significantly faster via the NSR than via the traditional route across the Suez Canal, thus making that delivery method more cost-effective. The parties stressed that both companies would continue their pro-active cooperation.

Miller and Frank also stressed that both companies would continue their cooperation. In September 2012, the SCF Amur tanker shipped for the first time Gazprom Neft's petroleum products via the NSR.