India is looking to buy a stake in the Novatek-operated Arctic LNG 2 project on the Gydan Peninsula.
Hardeep Singh Puri, India’s oil minister revealed this in a video posted on his Twitter account on Monday. Puri previously attended the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.
He told a media briefing before departing from Moscow that “a number of new potential investments were discussed.” These include Vostok Oil and Arctic LNG 2, he said.
During his 5-day visit, the minister held several meetings, including with Novatek’s chief Leonid Mikhelson, he said.
“I am sure that in the coming months, all this will lead to a strengthening of relations between Russia and India, especially in the energy sector,” he said.
Interfax has also reported that India’s ONGC and Petronet LNG are in talks with Novatek to buy a 9.9 percent stake in the Arctic LNG 2 project. Novatek owns 60 percent of the giant LNG project.
The Arctic 2 project includes the construction of three LNG trains with a capacity of 6.6 mtpa, each, using gravity-based structure platforms.
Moreover, Novatek expects to launch the first LNG train in 2023, with trains 2 and 3 to follow in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
Besides operator Novatek, the project partners include TotalEnergies, CNPC, CNOOC, and the consortium of Mitsui and JOGMEC.