A laden liquefied natural gas carrier on Tuesday hit a jetty at the Sakhalin Energy-operated liquefaction and export terminal located in Russia’s Far East.
The 145 000-cbm Grand Elena “has made contact with mooring dolphin of the LNG jetty at the Prigorodnoye production complex during her departure,” a Sakhalin Energy spokeswoman told LNG World News via email.
The incident took place at about 1830 Sakhalin time (0730 GMT).
“There were no injuries or damage to the environment. There is no impact on the production,” the spokeswoman said.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing, she said, adding that the relevant authorities were informed by the company.
Local media reports suggest that the LNG carrier was damaged during the incident and ended up with a hole on the left side of the vessel.
The Sakhalin facility is Russia’s first LNG export plant, producing LNG from two liquefaction trains with a total production capacity of more than 10 million tonnes per annum.
The LNG facility is operated by Russian gas behemoth Gazprom in cooperation with the Hague-based LNG giant Shell. Gazprom owns 50% plus one share in Sakhalin Energy while Shell holds 27.5% minus one share.
The majority of Sakhalin LNG cargoes land in Japan. In 2017, 64 percent of the LNG produced by the Sakhalin plant, or more than 7.4 million tonnes, was shipped to Japanese energy companies, according to Sakhalin Energy.
In addition, Sakhalin LNG buyers include companies from South Korea, China, Taiwan, India, Kuwait and Thailand.
By Mirza Duran