The Russian Arctic is the optimal place for liquefied natural gas (LNG) production amid low temperatures that persist throughout the year, and it is convenient to export the fuel via the Northern Sea Route, Doctor of Economics Alexey Fadeev told RIA Novosti.
"If we talk about LNG, we have three main competitive advantages in the Arctic. The first is a huge resource base - there is a lot of gas both onshore and offshore," said Fadeev, professor at the Graduate School of Production Management of the Peter the Great Polytechnic University of St. Petersburg.
"LNG is a gas compressed 600 times at a temperature of minus 163 degrees [Celsius]. Therefore, it's one thing to liquefy gas in Qatar or Algeria, where the air temperature is plus 40-50 [degrees], and another thing is in Yamal, when it's minus 30-40 [degrees] outside," the expert explained.
The third advantage is logistics, as the Northern Sea Route makes it possible to easily, quickly and safely supply gas to the sales markets.
According to the expert, the United States, which intends to produce LNG in Alaska, may also use this transportation opportunity in the near future.
Alex Shishlo, Editor in Chief of the European Bureau, Rough&Polished
