Obskaya–Bovanenkovo Line

Obskaya–Bovanenkovo Line
Obskaya–Bovanenkovo Line
	A train on the Obskaya–Bovanenkovo railway
Overview
Native name	Железнодорожная линия Обская—Бованенково—Карская
Status	Operational
Owner	Gazprom
Locale	Russia Far North
Termini	Karskaya; Obskaya;
Continues as	Northern Latitudinal Railway
Stations	11
Service
Type	Freight rail
Operator(s)	Gazprom
Rolling stock	TE33A
History
Opened	12 January 2010
Technical
Line length	572 km (355 mi)
Number of tracks	1
Track gauge	1,520 mm (4 ft 11+27⁄32 in) Russian gauge
Route map
Route map
	Legend
	Northern Latitudinal Railway
	to Labytnangi
	Northern Latitudinal Railway
	to Chum

The Obskaya–Bovanenkovo Line is a 572-kilometre long (355 mi) railway line in northern Russia, built and owned and operated by Gazprom.^[2] It was opened for traffic in 2010 and was built for the gas fields around Bovanenkovo on the Yamal Peninsula, the Yamal project. In February 2011, it was extended to the Karskaya station, making it 572 km long.^[1] Like most railways in the former Russian Empire, it is built to Russian gauge.

Obskaya–Bovanenkovo Railway line in blue colour

The railway contains a 3.9-kilometre long (2.4 mi) bridge, the Yuribey Bridge. It starts at Obskaya, branching off the Salekhard–Igarka Railway. The rail distance between Moscow and Bovanenkovo is 2,906 kilometres (1,806 mi).

There are plans to extend the railway to Kharasavey making the railway 678 kilometres (421 mi) long.^[3] Another plan is to extend the railway to the Yamal LNG installations at Sabetta.^[4]

Northernmost railway

The railway is the northernmost railway in the world,^[3] since Bovanenkovo is located at 70°22′30″N 68°40′12″E / 70.37500°N 68.67000°E / 70.37500; 68.67000, farther north than the Kirkenes–Bjørnevatn Line, previously the northernmost. Plans to construct a more northerly railway to serve the Baffinland Iron Mine in Canada^[5] have been deferred.^[6] Before completion of the railway to Bovanenkovo, the most northerly railway in Russia was the Norilsk railway. Due to all Russian railways being built to gauges other than standard gauge (usually Russian gauge, but a few narrow gauge lines also exist), the lines in Norway can however continue to claim being the northernmost standard gauge railway.