Russia’s independent LNG producer Novatek said Thursday that both its gas production and sales rose in 2021.
Novatek said in its preliminary report that its natural gas production reached 79.89 billion cubic meters, compared to 77.37 bcm in 2020.
The company’s total production of hydrocarbons rose by 2.9 percent as well to 626 million barrels of oil equivalent.
In addition, natural gas sales volumes increased slightly during the January-December period to 75.81 bcm. This marked a rise of 0.3 percent when compared to 75.62 bcm in the same period last year.
Novatek said its LNG sales decreased by 11.1 percent in 2021. The firm sold 7.94 bcm of LNG on international markets, compared to 8.93 bcm in the year before.
The company led by Russian billionaire Leonid Mikhelson attributed the decline to lower spot market sales from its Yamal LNG export terminal in the Russian Arctic.
The drop was due to the increase in Yamal LNG direct sales under long-term contracts and a corresponding decrease in Yamal LNG shareholders’ share, including Novatek’s share, of LNG volumes sold on the spot market, it said.