Russia’s Novatek said last week it planned to triple current liquefied natural gas production rates to as much as 70 million tons annually by 2030. That’s despite the current glut that has depressed LNG prices globally and the damage to demand done by the pandemic. The company has a major ally in that ambition, and it’s not Putin. It’s the Northern Sea Route. In September, shipments of liquefied natural gas from Novatek’s Yamal LNG facility via the Northern Sea Route hit 700,000 tons, according to an Argus Media report . That amount broke the record of 623,000 tons shipped in August and substantially increased the amount of LNG shipped from Yamal a year earlier. And shipments will continue to grow as the Northern Sea Route remains open for maritime traffic for longer. The Northern Sea Route, along Russia’s 24,000-km Arctic border, saw 935 voyages made in just the first […]