Sovcomflot, NYK secure refinancing for LNG pair

Russian shipping giant Sovcomflot and its Japanese partner NYK Line, through their respective units, have secured a $176 million loan to refinance two ice-class LNG carriers servicing the Sakhalin-2 project.

The loan facility has been agreed with SMBC Bank EU, the German unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation of Japan, Société Générale of France, and Shinsei Bank of Japan, Sovcomflot said in a statement.

The vessels in question, the Grand Aniva and Grand Elena, jointly owned and operated by SCF Group and NYK Line, transport LNG year-round from the port of Prigorodnoye on Sakhalin Island to customers in Japan, South Korea and China under long-term contracts with Sakhalin Energy, the operator of Sakhalin-2 project.

Since LNG shipments began from Sakhalin-2 in March 2009, the two carriers have completed 325 voyages, delivering over 46.5 million cubic metres of LNG to customers.

Grand Aniva (built in 2008) and Grand Elena (built-in 2007) each have a cargo capacity of 145,000 cubic meters. The vessels are assigned an ice-class of 1C, allowing them to safely operate in challenging ice conditions of the Sea of Okhotsk year-round.

With this financing facility, SCF Group is pioneering the adoption of provisions that enable lenders to comply with the Poseidon Principles – an environmental initiative by leading international banks that promotes a low carbon future for the global shipping industry by establishing a framework for assessing and disclosing the climate change impact of ship finance portfolios, the statement reads.

The Poseidon Principles are consistent with the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) ambition to reduce shipping’s greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 per cent by 2050.