All 15 Yamal LNG Icebreaking Tankers Operational

With the LNG tanker Yakov Gakkel now in operation, Yamal LNG has all 15 new Arc7 ice-class LNG tankers specifically built for the project.

The Yakov Gakkel, operated by Teekay, loaded the 354th LNG cargo in the port of Sabetta this week. She is bound for China. Like her sister ships, the 299 meter long, 97,000dwt vessel can carry up to 172,600 cubic meters of LNG and can break through two meter ice.

The ships have been designed by Aker Arctic and feature propulsion systems from ABB.

Yamal LNG has already shipped over 25 million tons of LNG since the start-up of Train 1 in December 2017.

The project’s Arc7 ice-class fleet is capable of shipping all of the LNG produced from the first three LNG trains and the planned Train 4. Yamal LNG says the operation of all 15 tankers will see shipments optimized in 20, both westbound and eastbound, including the more extensive use of the Northern Sea Route.

Yamal LNG is constructing a 17.4 mtpa natural gas liquefaction plant comprised of three LNG trains of 5.5 mtpa each and one LNG train of 900 thousand tons per annum, using the hydrocarbon resources of the South-Tambeyskoye field in the Russian Arctic. The first LNG Train began production in late 2017, and Trains 2 and 3 began production in July 2018 and November 2018, respectively. Yamal LNG shareholders include Novatek (50.1 percent), Total (20 percent), CNPC (20 percent) and the Silk Road Fund (9.9 percent).