Japanese shipper Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has signed a deal with Russia’s state-owned leasing company GTLK to buy stakes in two large floating storage units (FSU).

MOL wants to buy a total 49 per cent shares of the floating storage units owner companies. Currently, GTLK owns them 100 per cent, in relation to the LNG transshipment projects in Kamchatka and Murmansk.

Also, Russian Federation is the owner of GTLK, which is the largest leasing company in Russia.

Earlier, the FSU owner companies have entered into bareboat charter agreements with Arctic Transshipment. This is in fact joint venture of Novatek and TotalEnergies. The agreement was to provide transshipment services to Novatek LNG-projects by reloading LNG cargoes from ice-class LNG carriers to conventional LNG carriers.

MOL says the two FSUs have the world’s largest storage capacity of about 360,000 cubic metres. They will be placed at Bechevinskaya Bay in Kamchatka and Ura Bay at Murmansk, respectively.

South Korea’s shipyard Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) is currently working on the FSUs. Furthermore, MOL is supporting the construction from the technical and engineering perspective.

In conclusion, this move will reduce ghg by transporting LNG via the Northern Sea Route and by transshipping at Kamchatka and Murmansk.