Gazprom breaks ground on Baltic gas complex
Russia's Gazprom has broken ground on a complex on the Baltic Sea that will process up to 45bn m3/year of ethane-containing gas and produce up to 13mn metric tons/year of LNG, the company reported on May 21.
The project, a joint venture between Gazprom and private partner RusGazDobycha, will receive wet gas from Gazprom's fields on the Yamal Peninsula. In addition to LNG, it will also provide 18bn m3/yr of treated gas for export via the Nord Stream system. The separated ethane will be supplied to a gas chemical complex that RusGazDobycha is developing that will produce 3mn mt/yr of polymers.
"Here in the northwestern part of Russia, in the Leningrad region, we have launched the construction of a fundamentally new and high-tech industrial cluster," Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said at a launch ceremony. "It is essential for the region and the country at large. Advanced processing is the most efficient way to maximise the potential of the immense reserves of ethane-containing gas in Russia."
Gazprom has said before it expects the Baltic gas complex to start operations in late 2023. Initially it will receive gas from fields in the Nadym-Pur-Taz region of the Yamalo-Nenets region. But starting in 2026, it will also be supplied with gas from the Tambeyskoye field, Gazprom said in a statement. This is despite private gas supplier Novatek having repeatedly asked authorities for rights to Tambeyskoye so that it can produce LNG.
Gazprom contracted German Linde for the engineering of the processing facilities in March after scrapping a contract with Nipigaz. Despite this change, it insisted that the project's schedule would not be affected.