During the 2019 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Novatek, Sovcomflot, Cosco Shipping Corporation Limited, and the Silk Road Fund Co., Ltd, signed a four-party agreement to establish a joint venture Maritime Arctic Transport LLC.
The focus of the Maritime Arctic Transport joint venture is to manage an icebreaking tanker fleet of Arctic ice-class vessels, consisting of existing and new vessels, engaged in the transportation of LNG for current and planned NOVATEK projects, namely: Yamal LNG; Arctic LNG 2 and others.
Commenting on the agreement, Sergey Frank, President and CEO of Sovcomflot, said:
The sheer scale and level of technical complexity of the new international project to provide safe, year-round, transportation for LNG across the Northern Sea Route have required the combination of a whole range of intellectual, technological, human and financial resources, from leading Russian and Chinese organisations and businesses
He also added that the project’s transport and logistics are consolidated around a single operational platform that will contribute to increased efficiency, safety, and further optimisation of the entire cargo transit traffic system through the waters of the Northern Sea Route, including the Polar Silk Road project.
