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Sakhalin LNG Plant
Russia's first LNG plant on Sakhalin Island features two processing trains, each with an annual capacity of 4.8 million tonnes. Once the plant has reached its design capacity of 9.6 million tonnes, expected in 2010, the highly automated facility will continue to be operated by only 300 personnel.
The construction of this world-class facility commenced in August 2003, with around 10,000 people employed on site at the peak of construction activities. Construction workers and specialists came from over 40 countries. The LNG plant on Sakhalin uses a specially adapted technology of double mixed refrigerant, which enhances the plant's efficiency by taking advantage of Sakhalin's cold climate.
The LNG plant output was contracted under long-term contracts (some 20 and more years) before the end of construction. Approximately 65% of all Sakhalin LNG will be exported to nine buyers in Japan, the world's largest LNG market. The remaining volume (in approximately an equal split) will go to South Korea and North America (LNG will arrive at a terminal in Mexico, and after regasification most part of the gas will be supplied to the U.S.).
This will establish Russia as a new player on the Asian and American energy markets and will serve to strengthen the bilateral economic and trade relations between Russia and the Asia Pacific. It creates opportunities for countries in that region to diversify their gas supplies and lower their dependency on exports from other sources. The share of Sakhalin gas in the LNG consumption of Japan, in particular, will approach 8%.
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Last updated 21/02/09
