BELOKAMENKA /Murmansk Region/, July 21. /TASS/. The first production line of the Arctic LNG 2 project will reach its designed capacity between January and March 2024, with first batches produced as early as this year, the CEO of the Russian gas producer Novatek, Leonid Mikhelson, has told reporters.

"We are going to meet the deadlines of the first line’s launch, scheduled for 2023. Reaching the designed capacity will take time, we expect [this to happen] in the first quarter of the next year," the official said.

Arctic LNG-2 is Novatek's second LNG project. It includes the construction of three lines for the production of liquefied natural gas with a capacity of 6.6 mln metric tons per year each and stable gas condensate up to 1.6 mln metric tons per year. The project shareholders include Novatek (60%), Total (10%), CNPC (10%), CNOOC Limited (10%) and Japan Arctic LNG, a consortium of Mitsui and Jogmec (10%).