Novatek Reports 8.6% Bump in 2019 Output
Russia’s Novatek increased gas production by 8.6% in 2019, the private company said in a January 15 statement, thanks to its Yamal LNG export plant reaching its full three-train capacity of 16.5mn mt/yr in late 2018.
Gas output totalled 74.7bn m3 for the year, up for 68.8bn m3 in 2018. Liquids production rose 2.9% to 12.15mn mt, bringing overall hydrocarbon production to 1.62mn barrels of oil equivalent/day, up 7.5%.
Novatek’s international gas sales more than doubled from 6.06bn to 12.8bn m3 on account of Yamal LNG, while domestic sales edged down 0.6% to 65.65bn m3.
Novatek operates Yamal LNG with a 50.1% stake, while France’s Total has 20% and China’s CNPC and Silk Road Fund have 20% and 9.9% respectively. The Russian company has said previously that Yamal LNG’s fourth 0.9mn mt/yr train should start up early this year, slipping from Q4 2019, but it is yet to disclose the exact timing. It has not responded to an information request by NGW.
While the fourth train will add little to Novatek’s exports, the project will be crucial for testing the company’s proprietary Arctic Cascade liquefaction technology. Novatek plans to deploy Arctic Cascade on a larger scale at its 5mn mt/yr Obsk LNG project, due on stream in 2023.