Russian LNG sanctions face crucial test off Spanish coast
A gas carrier filled with Russian gas has arrived off the coast of Spain. Determining whether LNG, burdened by the latest American sanctions, can be sold and to whom will be a test of their effectiveness.
At the end of last month, the bulk carrier Cool Rover, currently docked near Spain and Portugal, set off from the Russian liquefied natural gas production plant, Portovaya LNG. According to data collected by Bloomberg, this ship, owned by Gazprom PJSC, was still making deliveries to Europe last year.
Cool Rover is the first gas carrier set to test how willing buyers are to break the latest sanctions imposed on Friday by the U.S. government against Russian LNG facilities.
Russian facilities under pressure
The Portovaya plant in northwest Russia has been placed on Washington's sanctions list, which includes Russian hydrocarbons. It is the first LNG export facility subjected to sanctions to weaken Moscow's financial capabilities during the war in Ukraine. These measures are intended to discourage buyers from importing gas from Russia.
Although the effects of sanctions are not usually immediate, the imposition of restrictions on Arctic LNG 2 in 2023 prompted buyers to act cautiously for fear of financial consequences not aligned with Washington's policies, Bloomberg notes.
Last year, Portovaya and Vysotsk LNG, led by Novatek PJSC, exported about 2.5 million tonnes of LNG, accounting for approximately 0.6 per cent of the world's export in 2024.
Sanctions are a significant element of the international strategy aimed at stopping the financing of Russia's war in Ukraine by reducing revenues from hydrocarbon trade.
