The Russian government will expand tax breaks to new deposits for the Yamal LNG project. The liquefaction project, which aims to produce 16.5 Mt/year of LNG by 2017-2018, is developed by Novatek with a 60% stake and by CNPC and Total (20% each). Developers plan to inject US$20bn in the project, which already enjoins some tax breaks, such as zero mineral extraction tax and export duty from the Yamal fields. Novatek's Salmanovsky and Geofizichesky fields in Gydan, right across the narrow Ob Bay from (Yamal's) South Tambey will now benefit from tax breaks; these fields are estimated to hold large resources, enabling Novatek to produce up to 30 bcm of gas and 1.2 Mt of condensate as soon as 2020, with output potentially starting in 2017.
Source: Total