OREANDA-NEWS. The gas carrier vessel SCF Arctic has been in continuous service for 45 years. For the last eight years she has belonged to Russia's largest shipping company, coming to symbolise the quality, reliability and safety of Sovcomflot's maritime shipping operations.

When SCF Arctic was acquired by Sovcomflot in 2006, the company was using its own vessels for LNG transportation for the first time, in doing so breaking into the premium market segment that had previously been out of reach for Russian shipping companies. SCF Arctic, and its twin ship SCF Polar, became Sovcomflot's first LNG carriers, and to this day operate under a time charter agreement with the company Stream LNG (a joint venture between Repsol and Gas Natural).

These carriers have successfully shipped LNG from Qatar and Algeria to ports in Spain and France, and from Trinidad & Tobago to Boston. They have recently been used in the transhipment of LNG using "ship-to-ship" technology, as part of the Escobar project in the estuary of the Parana River in Argentina.

SCF Arctic has taken several daunting sea journeys since she was built in 1969, and has been lauded many times by the maritime community. In 1993 she was a carrier in the world's first sub-Arctic gas project.

In 2013 SCF Arctic's excellent technical management led to her being awarded a "Quality shipping XXI" certificate by the United States Coast Guard, which is reserved only for ships that fully meet the requirements of America's maritime authorities on safe navigation and environmental protection. The official letter from the leadership of the US Coast Guard notes: "This is a significant achievement, and we applaud the efforts made by your company, and by the ship's captain and crew, in maintaining these high standards".

SCF Arctic has been in good working condition for all of her 45 years - but in recent times she has undergone significant reconditioning, and was docked awaiting approval of her classification, which became financially unviable. Her last journey under the Sovcomflot flag ended in the port of Durban, South Africa.

The LNG carriers "SCF Arctic" and "SCF Polar" served as bases for Sovcomflot to train their personnel: after gaining experience on them, several of their crew members have taken the step up to more modern ships. In turn, the current crew of SCF Arctic will be transferred to the ultra-modern LNG carrier "Melampus" when it becomes part of the SCF fleet at the beginning of 2015.