Russian liquefied natural gas, which is under Western sanctions, is heading to China
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Russian company Novatek exported 21 cargoes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to China from its Arctic LNG 2 project last year, according to data provided by Kpler and cited by Reuters.
Arctic LNG 2 is under sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States.
Another cargo of LNG arrived in China from Gazprom’s Portovaya terminal, which is also subject to Western sanctions.
Chinese companies CNPC and CNOOC are shareholders in Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2, each holding a 10% stake.
Russia’s total LNG exports to China reached a record high in 2025, despite the sanctions. In particular, deliveries in September doubled from the same period a year earlier, reaching 1.6 million tonnes, up from 751,000 tonnes.
Specifically, Novatek sold more than 1 million tons of LNG from Arctic LNG 2 to China between June and November, according to estimates. Shipments have accelerated significantly since August, with Vortexa reporting in September that six LNG carriers were in transit, carrying gas from the Gydan Peninsula.
The increase in Russian LNG shipments comes amid a general slowdown in demand for the fuel in China. For most of 2025, imports were weaker than in 2024, but they recovered towards the end of the year, registering solid year-on-year increases.
In November, China’s LNG imports rose 13.6% year-on-year to 6.94 million tons, and preliminary data from Kpler suggests flows were even higher in December, reaching 7.17 million tons.
The increases in November and December followed a 12-month period of declining LNG imports.
Reasons for the decline included, in addition to weaker demand, a significant increase in domestic natural gas production and higher pipeline gas imports, particularly from Russia via the Power of Siberia pipeline.
Overall, China’s LNG imports in 2025 are expected to be lower than in 2024, when volumes were higher amid efforts to fill gas storage capacity.
