Russia successfully bends the Japanese on the Sakhalin shelf
The decision on the participation of Japanese companies Mitsui and Mitsubishi in the Sakhalin-2 project will be made in the coming days.
Georgy Karlov, a deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation from the Sakhalin region, writes about this in his TG channel, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“We'll see how the situation develops. In any case, Russia has much more freedom of maneuver here: Japan is already experiencing a shortage of electricity, and the final decision on the participation of Japanese companies in the Sakhalin-2 project will still be made by the Russian leadership, and not by Mitsui and Mitsubishi,” wrote Karlov. .
He recalled that on June 30, the President of the Russian Federation signed a decree that the assets of the Sakhalin Energy company (Bermuda) - the project operator - should be transferred to the created Russian LLC.
If the current foreign shareholders (Shell with 27,5% shares and Japanese companies - 22,5%) do not want to maintain their stakes in the new company, they will be sold. Funds from the sale will be frozen in the Russian Federation without the possibility of withdrawal abroad. Bloomberg reported that buyers of LNG from Sakhalin-2 were forced to make payments through a Russian bank.
The reaction followed. At the end of July, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Koichi Hagiuda visited Washington and asked the curators for permission to remain in the Russian project. He motivated this by the fact that Russia would otherwise only increase its income.
“We explained to the American side that we want to maintain the current state of affairs and I think that we have reached an understanding,” Hagiuda said following the visit.
However, Karlov hopes that the share will still be taken away from the Japanese
“Our largest energy companies Gazprom and Rosneft, represented by their subsidiaries, will become operators of offshore projects. But no matter who manages the development, I think that all my fellow countrymen are following this process with great attention and hope.
Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 are once again becoming pilot projects and will serve as an example for the whole of Russia. With the difference that in the 90s this was the first experience of attracting foreigners to the development of the subsoil of the Russian Federation, and now the experience of their nationalization will become indicative, including for our former partners.
Russian operators need, first of all, to maximally respect the interests of Sakhalin and Kuril residents. It is clear that shelf development depends, among other things, on the changing international situation, but the financial component to the local and federal budgets should, at a minimum, be preserved,” Karlov wrote.
Earlier, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin called for the expulsion of Japanese partners from the Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2 projects. However, leading analyst of the National Energy Security Fund, Igor Yushkov, is confident that they will never leave Sakhalin-2.
“Transit of LNG from Sakhalin takes no more than a day. The Japanese are afraid that if they leave the project, the next step in the exchange of blows will be the liquidation of contracts for the supply of Russian gas. This is very important for Japan. Almost 10% of LNG inflow to Japan comes from Sakhalin-2. This is the most reliable and profitable supplier.
The contracts were signed at the time the project was launched, and they are preferential. Prices for Tokyo are among the lowest, if we talk about total LNG imports into the country,” Yushkov said in an interview with Sputnik.
According to the expert, gas supplies from Sakhalin may well be redirected to Beijing, where they will successfully push out competitors.
“Japan will have to buy gas from these other suppliers on the spot market under short-term contracts. Prices there are significantly higher than current long-term prices. The Japanese do not want to take these additional risks,” Yushkov said.
Sakhalin-2 is an oil and gas project implemented on Sakhalin Island under the terms of a production sharing agreement signed in the early 90s (about 60% of liquefied gas is intended for Japan). As part of Sakhalin-2, the Piltun-Astokhskoye and Lunskoye fields of the Sakhalin sea shelf are being developed. The Sakhalin-2 project includes three drilling platforms in the Sea of Okhotsk, a technological complex in the north of Sakhalin, and a liquefied natural gas plant.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.