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Japan’s top diplomat urges to intensify dialogue with Russia on Arctic LNG 2 project

Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi mentioned the Arctic LNG 2 project involving Japanese companies as an example

MOSCOW, December 18. /TASS/. Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi considers it necessary for Tokyo and Moscow to expand cooperation on the energy project Arctic LNG 2.

"Trade turnover between Japan and Russia has slightly decreased this year, though personally I consider the possibility of developing mutually beneficial trade exceptionally large," he said at the 15th plenary session of the intergovernmental commission on trade and economic issues on Wednesday.

The minister mentioned the Arctic LNG 2 project involving Japanese companies as an example. "That is the field where Japan’s demand and technologies and Russia’s potential complement each other," the diplomat said, adding that he personally "wants to intensify that cooperation."

Motegi also noted huge potential within the framework of cooperation in Russia’s Far East. "The work is underway in such areas as, first, enhancing the Far East’s industrial capacity, particularly in agriculture and fishing industry, second, encouraging of the use of the Trans-Siberian Railway, and third, particular projects, such as construction of the LNG terminal in Kamchatka," he said.

The minister added that "the Japanese-Russian relationship is steadily developing on a wide range of areas" with the lead of heads of the two countries, and urged to strengthen the dialogue on the issues of development of non-energy segment of industry through implementation of the eight-point cooperation plan.

Arctic LNG 2 is the second large-capacity project on production of liquefied natural gas implemented by Russia's Novatek after Yamal LNG with the resource base of the Utrennee field in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region. The project provides for construction of three liquefied natural gas trains with the capacity of 6.6 mln tonnes per year each on gravity-based structures. The participants are Novatek (60%), France’s Total (10%), China’s CNOOC and CNODC (hold 10% each) controlled by the Chinese oil and gas producer CNPC, and the consortium of Japan’s Mitsui & Co and Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC) (Japan Arctic LNG) (10%).

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