EU Shipyards Continue to Service Vessels Carrying Russian LNG

European shipyards continue to play a key role in keeping Russia’s fleet of liquefied natural gas carriers in service. As summer maintenance season begins the first Arc7 ice-class gas carriers in service of the Yamal LNG project have arrived at the Fayard A/S shipyard in Odense, Denmark. 

The Nikolay Urvantsev, operated by Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd, and chartered to Novatek’s Yamal LNG project, arrived at the drydock on June 26, departing around a week later. The vessel has been a regular visitor to this facility, along with Damen Shiprepair in Brest, France, with record show stints in dry dock in 2022 and 2024 and now 2025. 

A second Arc7 LNG carrier, Fedor Litke, operated by Dynagas, traveled to the Fayard A/S yard on July 17 following a delivery at Dunkerque. It remains in drydock as of July 23. The vessel previously called at the Odense yard in September 2022. 

Since 2017 the Danish and French yards have welcomed all fifteen Yamal LNG carriers into their facilities. The central location of the facilities along the main trade route to Europe is key to operating the fleet of purpose-built Arc7 ice-class vessels efficiently. 

Repairs and maintenance schedules are significantly condensed for the Arctic LNG carriers due to their harsh operating conditions along Russia’s Northern Sea Route.

The majority of yard work on the Yamal fleet has historically been carried out during the fall months. The Damen Shiprepair yard in Brest serviced at least eight Yamal LNG carriers between 2022 and 2024. The yard focuses on hull maintenance, the type of work the LNG carriers regularly require breaking a path through thick Arctic sea ice.

In a statement, Damen confirmed that the “decision has been made (beginning of 2025) to no longer carry out these repairs.”

As the vessels have not been directly sanctioned by the U.S. or the EU, the activities do not violate international law. Though procuring spare parts has become increasingly difficult, industry sources told gCaptain. Suppliers of gas chromatographs and flow meters used on LNG carriers have placed restrictions on the end user and no longer deliver parts to the vessels of the Yamal fleet.

“It is all related to sanctions. Critical parts are not available. Suppliers refuse to provide parts to vessels due to fear of sanctions,” a person familiar with the industry confirmed.

A number of sanctioned LNG carriers, including an Arc7 and several Arc4 ice-class vessels, have recently resorted to receiving maintenance at Chinese yards. The Arc7 LNG carrier Christophe de Margerie spent months at a Zhoushan Island yard east of Shanghai in summer 2024. Currently two additional sanctioned Russian gas carriers, Sputnik Energy and Nova Energy, remain at Chinese yards. 

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