ENG About us Fleet Investors Career Press center Press center news Publications SCF Bulletin Gallery Photo gallery Video gallery Frequently asked Questions news 12 OCTOBER 2017 The name of the new icebreaking support vessel "Fedor Ushakov" OCTOBER 11, 2017 The first head of the Novorossiysk Shipping Company, Orest Sychenikov, dies OCTOBER 4, 2017 Sovcomflot Board of Directors approved the company's results for the first half of 2017 All news TIME PROVEN RELIABILITY On January 20, 2017, the SCF Group celebrates 50 years since the founding of the Novorossiysk Shipping Company (Novoship PJSC) the mainPress centerPublications Russia pays tribute to Christophe de Margerie JUNE 5, 2017 Bertille bayart Le Figaro We shudder. The deafening roar of the misty forge as blue, white and red balloons soared into the air, makes us present the last, playful and warm greeting of the late Christophe de Margerie, the former president of Total, whose name was given to the giant icebreaker gas carrier last Saturday in the port "Bronka", located in the west of St. Petersburg. The ship, with its entire impressive mass, rises above the shed, under which a hundred guests have gathered, who have come to pay tribute to the memory of the French industrialist and wish the ship a happy voyage. The ceremony became both a meeting in a narrow circle, bringing together Christophe de Margerie's closest relatives, and a very official ceremony, as it was conducted by Vladimir Putin. "He said he would come, so he will come." They waited for the President of the Russian Federation for a couple of hours, and now his helicopter lands in the port. In the end, it was fair: to make the ship, which bears the name of the man, whose delays have become a legend, wait. And this allowed his relatives, his business partners, his former colleagues to share memories, tell a lot of stories about this leader, so unlike others, who was immediately recognized by his lush bushy mustache; even thought about portraying them on the bow of the icebreaker. Behind that tragic night on October 20, 2014, when the plane of the former president of Total was in an accident, crashing at the Vnukovo airport in Moscow, as a result of which he and all three crew members died. Gradually, everyone agreed with the version of the accident, of course, absurd. Involuntarily, you are torn between resignation to fate and bewilderment. An investigation into the driver of a snowblower that collided with the plane, as well as the dispatch service, is still ongoing, and not all questions have been answered. His widow Bernadette is surrounded by their children: Laetitia, Diana and Fabrice, his brother Jean-Marc, and everyone remembers how much he loved those brief moments (and those endless evenings!) Spent in the company of Christophe de Margerie. The jokes of the one who was called "Big Mustache" are remembered and revive those gathered at this reception. They laugh, they cry. On the podium - Patrick Pouyanne, who headed this oil holding two days after his death, at some point freezes, and his eyes fill with tears. An amazing sight for this big boss of the Paris Stock Exchange, this imposing big man known for his volcanic temperament - and so overwhelmed. Vladimir Putin came to pay tribute to the memory of "an outstanding leader of French industry, a great and true friend of Russia." "He had a unique strategic vision, he always strived to strengthen the bonds of friendship and cooperation between France and Russia." This winter, the head of state has already taken the time to address the ship's crew during a video conference that took place on the day the ship first went to sea. Indeed, Christophe de Margerie has become a symbol for the Kremlin - a symbol of cooperation between the Western oil holding and Russia, which began long ago and has continued despite the sanctions imposed by the US and European authorities against Moscow since the summer of 2014. The very sanctions that Christophe de Margerie condemned literally on the day of his death in a conversation with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. In Russia, Patrick Puiyanne continues the work of his predecessor and reaffirms his firm's “pioneering spirit” and the long-term commitment of this French oil company in this country. The continuity of this strategy was reaffirmed in November 2014, when the Russian president received Patrick Puiyanne at a government dacha in Sochi. "Our mission is to build bridges, not build fences," Patrick Puyanne said on Saturday in the presence of Vladimir Putin, apparently hinting at Donald Trump's America. $ 27 billion project A few days ago, they met in Versailles, during a meeting between the President of Russia and Emmanuel Macron at an exhibition dedicated to Peter the Great, sponsored by Total. In this regard, the President of Russia again mentioned the need to maintain ties between Russia and France, despite the "friction", "which, incidentally, was well understood by both the heads of enterprises and both countries." And all this is in spite of the recent warnings of the G7 regarding Moscow in the context of the conflict with Ukraine. The naming ceremony of the vessel thus fits into a number of diplomatic events, among which is the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, which took place over three days; it was attended as a special guest of honor by the Prime Minister of India, as well as numerous heads of foreign companies, including those from France: Frédéric Houdea (Société General) or Jean-Pascal Tricoire (Schneider). In the port of Bronka, the economic significance of the event was also great. The Christophe de Margerie vessel, whose godmother was Federation Council Chairman Valentina Matvienko, became the first in a series of completely unique icebreaker-type gas carriers, numbering 15 units. And there is every reason to talk about uniqueness. These vessels will be filled with precious cargo: liquefied natural gas (LNG), produced on the Yamal Peninsula, located in the Arctic part of Western Siberia, 600 km north of the Arctic Circle. This is a $ 27 billion project involving Total (20%), the Russian holding Novatek (in which Total owns 19.8%) and the Chinese holding CNPC; the production cycle begins next year, with full capacity (90,000 barrels per day for Total) occurring in 2019. This is a gigantic unprecedented project carried out in the extreme conditions of the Far North, where the polar night lasts for two months and the winter temperature drops to -50 C ° ... “He's very important. For the development of world energy, for the development of new technologies for the extraction of minerals, for the development of the Northern Sea Route, for the exploration of the Arctic, "Vladimir Putin summed up in his speech on Saturday. The icebreaker, which was "baptized" in St. Petersburg, was the answer to such a challenge. “Such a vessel was needed to export gas from Yamal,” sums up Jacques Bess, aka “Admiral”, who heads the team of engineers at Total who designed this vessel. It is a 300 meter long monster with a 45 megawatt power plant and a displacement of 172,000 cubic meters. This technological gem is priced at $ 320 million a piece! Everything is designed to withstand the cold of the North Pole: deck equipment, winches, mooring lines, etc. are covered with covers, the number of hydraulic systems is minimized. The vessel is capable of turning around its axis and, most importantly, breaking through ice up to 2.1 meters thick. “For this, its sloping aft part is adapted, - explains Jacques Bess. - To break through the ice, the ship must“ sit on it ”, just like Obelix, ”he laughs. The work will be completed by three screws under the bottom, they have to crush the ice, "as for making a cocktail" Margarita "; thus, the ice does not stick and cannot crush the hull of the ship. And since such maneuvers are sometimes done in reverse, the ship has two bridges connected by a corridor. Four ships by November The first ice tests, which took place from mid-February to mid-March, were successful. Daewoo's South Korean shipyard completed the order after it encountered production problems at the first stage and sent 6,000 tons of metal structures for scrap. They will have delivered four more ships by November. From the port of Sabetta, the ships will rise to the mouth of the Ob and, along a narrow artificial canal, will enter the Kara Sea and the Arctic Ocean. Then two routes were outlined, along which these vessels will be guided by the operator "Sovcomflot". The first route is westbound, with Arc 7 vessels delivering LNG to terminals in Zeebrugge and Dunkirk, where it will be loaded onto more conventional vessels bound for southern Europe or Asia via the southern route. The second route runs along the north, eastward, over the heaviest ice. The Yamal project was signed at the end of 2013, six months before the imposition of sanctions that are still being applied against Novotek, which forced Total and its partners to reduce the budget without attracting a single dollar from the United States. China took over the baton. Meanwhile, another giant project - the Shtokman gas condensate field - had to be abandoned. It turned out to be too expensive. The oil and gas sector has changed in the wake of the depreciation of the exchange rate, and there is no time for excesses. Total is adapting to this new situation and promoting its pawns in new markets: in Brazil, as well as in Iran. The legacy of Christophe de Margerie remains, this Russian project that has been patiently promoted since the opening of the first office of the holding in Moscow in 1991. Sergei Mingareev, who is now retired, stood at the origins of the project; Back to the list of publications Website development: © PAO Sovcomflot 2017 SCF GroupProcurementSite MapContacts