Clean Arctic, Loan for Arctic LNG 2, and Social Roadshow

Today, on 30 July, the third phase of the Clean Arctic initiative jointly implemented by the Russian Arctic National Park and Rosneft, Russia’s major oil and gas producer, kicks off. Under this project phase, a team of researchers from the Russian Science Academy and the wildlife preserve personnel will travel to Franz Josef Land, a remote archipelago located in the Arctic Ocean. The team will focus on studying long-term effects of oil spills on the Arctic environment.

Novatek, one of the key players on Russia’s gas market, has made public its intention to seek a loan of EUR 9.2 billion (USD 10.9 billion) secured on the company’s share in Arctic LNG 2, its new flagship project in the Russian High North. The funds in question will be invested into the construction on the Taimyr Peninsula of an LNG plant with a total capacity of about 20 million metric tons of LNG per year.

The Arkhangelsk regional authorities have announced their new initiative called Social Roadshow. The idea behind it is to launch a grassroot public awareness campaign targeting remote areas of this Arctic region. Mobile groups of social workers will visit remote communities to tell their residents about the social benefits they are entitled to and encourage them to apply for such benefits. The first such “roadshow” will take place in the pilot community in the coming days.