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Scf Group News

15 Nov 2021

SCF gets $110m Credit Facility to Finance Ice-Class Shuttle Tankers

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) signed a $110 million credit facility, for 10 years, with ING BANK N.V., SMBC BANK EU AG and UNICREDIT BANK AG, to finance two new ice-class shuttle tankers.The ships, scheduled to be delivered in Q1 2022, will serve the Sakhalin-1 project (oil and gas development in the Sea of Okhotsk, on the north-eastern shelf of Sakhalin Island, Russia. Exxon Neftegas Ltd. (an affiliate of Exxon Mobil) is the project’s operator and acts as the charterer for the vessels.

09 Jul 2021

Sovcomflot Charters Two More LNG Carriers to TotalEnergies

Igor Tonkovidov, CEO - Chairman of the Management Board, PJSC Sovcomflot (Photo: Sovcomflot)

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) has received confirmation from TotalEnergies of the exercise of its option for two further next-generation 174,000-cubic-meter-capacity liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.

16 Jun 2021

Keel Laid for First Russian-built Arc7 LNG Carrier

Pictured are, left, Vladimir Bastin, Deputy Director, SCF Engineering Centre, and right, Roman Tseyger, Deputy CEO – Chief Production Officer, Zvezda. (Photo: Zvezda)

Russian shipbuilder Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex on Tuesday held a keel laying ceremony for a new Arctic liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier ordered by compatriot shipowner PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group).The newbuild is the lead vessel in a series of 15 carriers ordered from Zvezda for servicing the Arctic LNG 2 project. She is the first-ever vessel of such dimensions, cargo capacity and icebreaking capabilities to be constructed at a Russian shipyard.The series' lead ship will be owned by SCF…

04 Jun 2021

Two Sovcomflot Tankers Chartered to the Sakhalin-2 Project

The agreements were signed at the 24th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum by Igor Tonkovidov, President and CEO of Sovcomflot, and Roman Dashkov, CEO of Sakhalin Energy, in the presence of Alexander Novak, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Pavel Sorokin, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Energy, and Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Management Committee of Gazprom. (Photo: PAO Sovcomflot)

On 4 June 2021, Sovcomflot (SCF Group) and Sakhalin Energy, the operator of the Sakhalin-2 project, signed long-term time-charter contracts for two existing liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled Aframax tankers. The vessels Korolev Prospect and Vernadsky Prospect, part of SCF’s ‘Green Funnel’ series, will be delivered to the charterer in 2024 and employed to shuttle crude oil for the Sakhalin-2 project for 10 years, with an extension option for up to three years. Prior to delivery…

20 May 2021

Sovcomflot, Shell ‘Green Funnel’ Project Hits LNG Fueling Milestone

The 150th operation was performed by Korolev Prospect, on time charter to Chevron, receiving 600 tonnes of marine LNG from Shell and delivered by Q-LNG 4000 outside Port Canaveral, Florida. Image courtesy Sovcomflot (SCF Group)

Sovcomflot (SCF Group) and Shell performed a landmark 150th marine LNG fuelling operation for SCF’s ‘Green Funnel’ Aframax tankers.Since operations began in 2018, SCF’s ‘Green Funnel’ Aframaxes have taken more than 62,000 tonnes of marine LNG fuel from Shell and all 150 operations were reportedly performed safely without incident, injury or loss of fuel.The 150th operation was performed by Korolev Prospect, on time charter to Chevron, receiving 600 tonnes of marine LNG from Shell and delivered by Q-LNG 4000 outside Port Canaveral, Florida, whilst en route from Denmark to the US Gulf.

19 Mar 2021

First-Ever: Sovcomflot’s Gagarin Prospect Tanker in LNG Bunkering Milestone in U.S.

Russian oil and gas shipping giant Sovcomflot said Friday it had on March 15, together with Shell, "broke new ground," with the completion of the "first-ever Aframax tanker fuelling using LNG in the USA."Sovcomflot’s Gagarin Prospect tanker, on long-term charter to Shell, was en-route from Corpus Christi to Europe. It received 1,075 cubic metres of marine LNG from the Shell NA LNG LLC chartered Q-LNG 4000 outside the Port of Canaveral, Florida. "This represented the first ever ship-to-ship LNG fuelling of a large capacity Aframax tanker in the USA…

21 Jan 2021

Sovcomflot, Total Ink Timecharter Deal on LNG Transport

Igor Tonkovidov, President and CEO of PAO Sovcomflot at the signing. Photo courtesy Sovcomflot.

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) and Total have concluded a time charter agreement for up to seven years for a newbuild 174,000-cubic-meter-capacity liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier, scheduled to be delivered Q3 2023 and to be owned and operated by SCF, with options for up to two additional vessels.The new vessel will be the latest in a series of SCF’s new-generation conventional Atlanticmax LNG carriers, with three sister ships already in operation: SCF La Perouse, SCF Barents and SCF Timmerman.The vessel will be fitted with an X-DF propulsion system…

15 Jan 2021

New LNG Carrier Delivered to Sovcomflot

On January 15, 2021, PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) took delivery of SCF Timmerman, a new 174,000-cbm LNG carrier built by Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries. Photo credit Sovcomflot

Russian shipping company PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) on Friday took delivery of SCF Timmerman, a new 174,000-cubic-meter-capacity liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier. The ship embarked on its maiden commercial voyage the same day, and is operated under a long-term time charter agreement with Shell, which will provide SCF with an additional $165 million of contract backlog.The ship is named after Frans Timmerman, a 17th-century Dutch merchant who served as a shipbuilding mentor to the Russian emperor Peter the Great and played an important role in creating the Russian seaborne fleet.

20 Nov 2020

Zvezda Cuts Steel for First Russian-built Icebreaking LNG Carrier

(Photo: Zvezda Shipbuilding)

Russia's Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex has started building the first in a series of 15 icebreaking liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers ordered for year-round gas transport along the Northern Sea Route from the Arctic LNG 2 project in Russia's high north. They will be the first such vessels constructed domestically.Shipbuilding, financing, lease and time charter contracts for the new ships were signed by SCF Group, NOVATEK Group, Zvezda and VEB.RF Group in 2019. The lead LNG carrier…

28 Oct 2020

DSME to Build Six Second-generation Arc7 LNG Carriers

File photo: The world's first icebreaking LNG carrier Christophe de Margerie entered service in 2017 (Photo: SCF Group)

South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) has signed shipbuilding contracts with Russia's Sovcomflot and Japan's Mitsui O.S.K. Lines for the construction of six icebreaking Arc7 liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers based on a newly developed design.The new ships will be the second generation of vessels engineered to transport LNG from the Russian Arctic, with special emphasis on year-round operation in the eastern sector of the Northern Sea Route.DSME…

15 Sep 2020

Sovcomflot Takes Delivery of New LNG Carrier

SCF Barents -  Credit: Sovcomflot

Sovcomflot, a Russian oil and gas shipping company,  has taken delivery of SCF Barents, a new 174,000-cbm LNG carrier.The vessel was delivered Monday and has already started its maiden voyage under a long-term time charter agreement with Shell.According to Sovcomflot, the LNG carrier was named after Willem Barents, a prominent Dutch navigator and explorer. The naming ceremony, held on September 10, was attended by Igor Tonkovidov, President and CEO of SCF Group; Cederic Cremers…

20 Sep 2021

Sovcomflot's 1H Profit Jumps 149%

Credit: Sovcomflot

Russian energy shipping company Sovcomflot reported a net profit for the first half of 2020 of $226,4 million, a 148.8 percent increase to last year's first-half income of $91 million. The first half 2020 revenue was $951,3 million, up from $794,1 million in the first half of 2019.Igor Tonkovidov, President and CEO of SCF Group said  Friday that the company had achieved its targets with an optimal balance of long- and short-term charter contracts, together with a rational geographic distribution of vessels.

16 Mar 2020

Sovcomflot Updates Fleet Status

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group), a Russian maritime shipping company specializing in petroleum and LNG shipping, announced that it has taken delivery of four newbuildings during last year.Three ‘Green Funnel’ LNG-fuelled Aframax crude oil tankers (Korolev Prospect, Vernadsky Prospect, Samuel Prospect) and Mikhail Lazarev, an Arctic MR shuttle tanker transporting crude oil for the Novy Port project, are now under a long-term contract with Gazprom Neft.All vessels are designed to the highest industry standards of safety and sustainability, it said.Korolev Prospect, a ‘Green Funnel’ crude oil tanker, became the first vessel to cross the entire length of the Northern Sea Route using only cleaner-burning LNG as a fuel.According to the company…

10 Feb 2020

Sovcomflot Names LNGC SCF La Perouse

Russian state-controlled shipowner Sovcomflot (SCF) has named the 174,000m³ SCF La Perouse - the first of three LNG tankers on order with South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI).The LNG carrier named after Jean-François de la Pérouse, a French explorer of the Pacific.The vessel will operate under a long-term time charter agreement with Total. The event was held at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries’ shipyard, Republic of Korea. Fleur-Eve Durin le Foll, the spouse of Total’s Country Chair Russia, is the vessel’s sponsor.Sergey Frank, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PAO Sovcomflot, said: “Sovcomflot and Total have enjoyed a strong partnership for many years, and we are happy to have an opportunity to expand this cooperation.

10 Feb 2020

Tanker Crew Rescues Seven from Sinking Fishing Vessel

An tanker picked up seven crew embers from a sinking fishing vessel in the Gulf of Finland.While en-route from the Port of Ust-Luga to Copenhagen on February 6, the tanker SСF Angara received a distress signal from the Russian fishing trawler Pongoma, which was sinking on the traverse of Tallinn, 26 nautical miles offshore, SCF Group said on Monday.The tanker and her crew, under the leadership of master Alexey Maksimovsky, responded to the request for help, and following the instructions received from the rescue center in Tallinn, diverted to assist the ship in distress.During a rescue operation, all seven members of Pongoma’s crew were brought aboard the tanker. Two fishermen in need of urgent medical care were then evacuated by helicopter to Helsinki.

07 Feb 2020

Four More Icebreaking LNG Carriers for Smart LNG

Smart LNG LLC, a joint venture of Sovcomflot and Novatek, signed an agreement with VEB.RF Group for lease financing of four Arc7 icebreaking LNG carriers for the Arctic LNG 2 project. At the same time, SMART LNG signed long-term time charter agreements for these tankers with Arctic LNG 2 LLC.The vessels will be built at Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex in the Russian Far East. Earlier, in October 2019, SCF Group signed financing and long-term time charter agreements for the lead vessel in this series.The design of the series draws upon the experience of operating Christophe de Margerie, the world’s first icebreaking LNG carrier, introduced in 2017. This led to the integration of various advanced engineering solutions into the design.

15 Nov 2019

Sovcomflot Profits Up on Stronger Tanker Market

Russia's state-owned tanker carrier Sovcomflot (SCF Group) reported improvements on both the top and bottom line in the third quarter benefiting from a stronger tanker market.The energy shipping company posted a net profit of  $26m as revenue increased in the third quarter.Sergey Frank, Chairman of the Board of Directors of PAO Sovcomflot, said: “We are satisfied with the Group’s performance over the third quarter. Sovcomflot steadily follows through on its strategy of increasing the share of large-scale industrial shipping projects in its portfolio."He added: "During the reporting period, Sovcomflot achieved a major strategic milestone when we agreed with NOVATEK to establish a new joint venture, SMART LNG.

04 Nov 2019

SCF, NOVATEK Ink Icebreaker T/C Contract

SCF Group and VEB.RF Group, a Russian financial institution, signed an agreement for lease financing of the lead ship in a series of icebreaking LNG carriers expected to be built to serve the Arctic LNG 2 project.At the same time, SCF Group and NOVATEK Group signed a long-term time charter agreement for this tanker.The vessel will be constructed at Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex in the Russian Far East. She is designed for year-round operations in the challenging ice conditions of the Kara Sea and The Gulf of Ob and will be able to sail independently through ice over two meters thick.All the LNG carriers in the new series will be operated under the Russian flag. The Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (RS) will provide technical supervision during the construction of the vessel series.

13 Sep 2019

Sovcomflot, NYK Pact on Financing 2 LNG Carriers

Russian maritime shipping company specializing in petroleum and LNG shipping Sovcomflot (SCF Group) and NYK Line have announced that they have signed a new $176 million non-recourse credit facility for eight years with three leading international banks.The banks are: Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. of Japan (through its German subsidiary, SMBC Bank EU AG); Société Générale of France; and Shinsei Bank of Japan. The agreement was reportedly signed through joint venture companies belonging to SCF Group and NYK Line.The facility will be used towards refinancing two ice-class LNG carriers servicing the Sakhalin-2 project, Grand Aniva and her sister ship Grand Elena, which are jointly owned and operated by SCF Group and NYK Line.

29 Aug 2019

Revenues Soar at Russia’s PAO Sovcomflot

Sergey Frank, President and CEO, PAO Sovcomflot. Photo: Sovcomflot.

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group), which serves the energy shipping and offshore services to the oil and gas industries, reported in the first half of 2019 revenues rose 16.6% ($828m vs. $710.1m), TCE revenue rose 19.1% ($609m vs. $511.3m) and EBITDA rose 42.4% ($381.2m vs. $267.7m) as compared to the first half of 2018.Highlights from the first half included:• Korolev Prospect, Vernadsky Prospect and Samuel Prospect LNG-fuelled 114,000 DWT Aframax tankers added to the fleet.•In March 2019, the Group celebrated the 10th anniversary of the start of LNG shipments from the Sakhalin-2 project.

29 Jul 2019

Sovcomflot Orders 3 LNG MR Product Tankers

Russian maritime shipping company PAO Sovcomflot approved transactions with Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex (Primorsky Region) and a subsidiary of JSC VEB Leasing to place orders for the construction of three new-generation MR product carriers using LNG as their main fuel.The vessels will be chartered to a subsidiary of PJSC NOVATEK under twenty year time-charter agreements, said a press release from the state-owned firm specializing in LNG shipping.Sergey Frank, President and CEO of Sovcomflot, said: "We are grateful to PAO Sovcomflot’s shareholder and our partners PJSC NOVATEK and VEB.RF for supporting SCF’s environmental initiative that…

11 Jul 2019

SCF Celebrates the Day of Russian Sea

Russian maritime shipping company specializing in petroleum and LNG shipping, PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) held a traditional meeting of the company’s management with masters of Sovcomflot vessels on the eve of Russia’s Day of Marine and River Fleet Workers, celebrated on the first Sunday of July.The state-owned corporation said in a press note that in the lead-up to this day, Russian Ministry of Transport has awarded 43 masters and 48 chief engineers of Sovcomflot vessels its Badge for Accident-Free Work in Maritime Transportation.During the meeting, Sergey Frank, President & CEO of Sovcomflot, expressed his gratitude to the company’s senior fleet officers for their operational excellence and significant contribution to ensuring safe and reliable sea transportation of cargo for the company'

10 Jul 2019

Sovcomflot New LNG Tanker Cuts 30% CO2

Russian shipping company PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) has achieved significant CO2 emission cuts since taking delivery of the first of its “Green Funnel” LNG-fueled Aframax crude oil tankers last year.PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) has accumulated data showing that using LNG as a primary fuel for these large-capacity tankers enabled a 30 per cent reduction of CO2 emissions compared with similar vessels powered by traditional heavy fuel. This reduction exceeds the original design target values.Igor Tonkovidov, Executive Vice President and CTO/COO of Sovcomflot, delivered a report on the first results of operating ‘Green Funnel’ series tankers…