Press release Yamal LNG and Fluxys Belgium

Yamal LNG and Fluxys LNG sign contract for LNG transshipment services at Zeebrugge LNG terminal

06 March 2015, Brussels – JSC Yamal LNG: Yamal Trade (Yamal LNG's 100% subsidiary) and Fluxys LNG signed a 20-year contract for transshipment of up to 8 million tons of LNG per year at the port of Zeebrugge, Belgium, to support year-round LNG deliveries from the Yamal Peninsula to Asian-Pacific markets.

Evgeniy Kot, General Director Yamal LNG: "As the Yamal LNG Project is progressing well, following the schedule, signature of this agreement marks another important step in the life of the Project. A transshipment platform in Northwest Europe is a key element to our transportation and logistics arrangement. A contract with Fluxys LNG, an experienced and reliable partner, will secure the LNG supply chain for our buyers."

Pascal De Buck, CEO Fluxys Belgium: "We are very pleased to take with Yamal LNG the versatility of the LNG terminal in Zeebrugge to yet another level. Belgian federal regulator CREG has been very cooperative in the design of an appropriate regulatory framework for the new transshipment services we will offer. Thanks to a long-term agreement with such an ambitious LNG supplier we will embark on a new considerable investment for the terminal development. With a transshipment capacity at the terminal of 8 million tonnes of LNG per annum, the port of Zeebrugge will see a significant increase in ship movements."

Joachim Coens, Managing Director Port of Zeebrugge: "We are very pleased with this contract and the cooperation between Fluxys LNG and Yamal LNG. This cooperation is a valorisation of the experience and knowhow of Fluxys in Zeebrugge and a reinforcement of our port as a gas hub. We are looking forward to this new impulse for our port and the challenge that goes along with it."

During Arctic summer, Yamal LNG will be delivering its LNG to Asian-Pacific markets via the Northern Sea Route using ice class ARC7 LNG tankers. In winter, the Arctic LNG tankers will transit via the Zeebrugge LNG terminal where Fluxys LNG will provide services to tranship LNG onto conventional vessels used to make final delivery to Asian-Pacific markets via the Suez Canal.

This 20-year contract reinforces the Belgian gas system as a crossroads for international flows and the position of Zeebrugge as an all-round LNG hub in Northwest Europe. With transshipment services added to its offering the terminal will provide a complete range of services for large LNG volumes as well as for small-scale use for vessel bunkering and trailer loading. The transshipment services require the construction of a 5th storage tank and additional process facilities.