A Russian liquefied natural gas export facility delivered its first shipment to China since being sanctioned by the US in January, the latest sign of increased energy cooperation between Beijing and Moscow.
The Valera vessel, which loaded a shipment from Gazprom PJSC’s Portovaya facility on the Baltic Sea in October, arrived at the Beihai import terminal in southern China on Monday, ship data compiled by Bloomberg shows. Both Valera and Portovaya were sanctioned by Joe Biden’s administration to thwart Russia’s plans to boost LNG exports.
China, which doesn’t recognize the unilateral sanctions, has increasingly bought blacklisted Russian gas over the last few months, ratcheting up energy ties between the two countries. Beijing has also ignored a broader push by US President Donald Trump to halt sales of Russian oil, which will likely be a key part of trade negotiations between Washington and New Delhi this week.
Russia has two relatively small LNG export facilities on the Baltic Sea, with the Novatek PJSC-led Vysotsk plant also blacklisted by the US. Another sanctioned Russian plant, the Arctic LNG 2 site in Siberia, started delivering fuel to Beihai in late August.
Total Russian LNG shipments to China, including from unsanctioned plants, rose about 14 percent from September through November from the same period a year earlier, ship data shows. If unloaded, Valera would be the 19th shipment of LNG into China from a blacklisted Russian plant since August, the data shows.
In mid-October, satellite images showed a tanker that loaded at Portovaya transferring fuel into another vessel registered to a Hong Kong-based company near Malaysia. That ship, known as CCH Gas, has been sending out false location signals, and was spotted by satellites near China last month. It isn’t clear where it is currently located.
What do you think? We’d love to hear from you, join the conversation on the
The is a new social experience created for you and all energy professionals to Speak Up about our industry, share knowledge, connect with peers and industry insiders and engage in a professional community that will empower your career in energy.
