Russia's Arctic LNG 2 agrees loans worth 9.5 bln euros

(Reuters, Moscow, 30 November 2021) Russian gas producer Novatek (NVTK.MM) said on Tuesday its Arctic LNG 2 plant has signed loan agreements with foreign and Russian banks worth 9.5 billion euros ($10.8 billion), securing necessary external financing for the project. Earlier this year, Novatek shareholders approved external financing of $11 billion for the $21 billion Arctic project, which is expected to start production of liquefied natural gas in 2023. Novatek has had difficulty in securing funds from Europe, wary of political standoff with Russia as well as calls against tapping hydrocarbons in the Arctic amid efforts to tackle climate change. Chinese financial institutions, including the China Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of China, signed credit facility agreements totalling 2.5 billion eurosfor up to 15 years. Financial institutions from the OECD member countries signed credit facility agreements totaling up to 2.5 billion euro. This includes the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and other lenders insured by export credit agencies. Sources told Reuters earlier this month that Italy's SACE may insure a loan of around 500 million euros for Arctic LNG 2.