Yamal LNG: Challenges of an LNG port in Arctic

摘要

Yamal LNG project plans to build an LNG plant in the Yamal Peninsula. The export of LNG will be done from the future port of Sabetta alongside Ob Gulf coast. At the peak of operation of the plant, 232 LNG carriers per year will come to load cargo (i.e. a vessel every 38 hours). The intensity of traffic will make Sabetta the second largest port north of the Arctic Circle after Murmansk. However, ice is present 9 months per year in the Ob Gulf. At the future location of the port, ice occurs up to 8 months per year with a maximum thickness of about 2.5m. Prior to arrival to the port, vessels will have to sail in dredged channels of limited width. Once in the port, they have to manoeuvre in brash ice conditions and load cargo protected from ice actions. To ensure continuous operation of the LNG plant, the port should be open for operations all year whatever the environmental conditions are. To do so, different studies and management systems are under development. In the port, a dedicated brash ice management system will be installed. The aim of this system is to control brash ice thickness to ensure safe and efficient vessel manoeuvring even in a severe winter. During loading, vessels will have to be protected from ice actions and especially from drifting ice during the ice break-up period. Ice protection barriers will be built for this purpose. Because of the frequent traffic, brash ice will accumulate in the channels. This will make it necessary to navigate along different ice channels to permit permanent sailing. The objective of this paper is to present the challenges associated with the Yamal LNG port design and to describe the related investigations and solutions.