Russia’s Gazprom to buy Shell’s stake in Sakhalin LNG terminal operator

Russia has approved the sale of a 27.5 percent stake, previously owned by LNG giant Shell, in the new operator of the Sakhalin LNG plant to a unit of state-owned Gazprom, according to a government order dated March 23.

Under the order, Gazprom’s unit Sakhalin Project will buy the stake in Sakhalin Energy for 94.8 billion roubles ($1.02 billion).

Gazprom already has a 50 percent operating stake in the LNG terminal operator.

The government also declared null and void the order from April last year to approve Novatek’s purchase of Shell’s 27.5 percent stake in Sakhalin Energy LLC, but it did not provide further information on the reasons behind this decision.

LNG Prime invited Shell to comment on the new decision by the government.

“We cannot comment on matters relating to the Russian Federal Government’s Decree process,” a Shell spokesperson said.

“Shell reserves all its legal rights relating to its 27.5 percent (minus one share) interest in Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd (SEIC),” the spokesperson said.

It remains unclear whether the Russian government would allow the transfer of the sale funds to Shell.

Back in 2022, Shell said it will not take equity in the new Sakhalin LNG terminal operator.

President Vladimir Putin signed a decree in June 2022 allowing Russia to take charge of the Sakhalin-2 project due to Western sanctions imposed on Russia.

Sakhalin Energy LLC launched its operations on August 19, 2022 and the Sakhalin-2 LNG export terminal produced about 11.5 million tonnes of LNG in 2022.

Previous reports suggest the LNG terminal produced more than 10 million tonnes of LNG in 2023.

Besides Shell’s 27.5 percent interest and Gazprom’s 50 percent operating stake in the original entity, Japan’s Mitsui owned 12.5 percent stake and compatriot Mitsubishi had 10 percent in the plant.

Mitsui and Mitsubishi won approvals in 2022 from the Russian government to take stakes in the new operator.

Most Popular

Yang Ming books LNG-powered containerships in South Korea

Taiwan’s Yang Ming Marine Transport has decided to order LNG dual-fuel container vessels from South Korea's Hanwha Ocean as part of its ongoing fleet optimization plan.

Sabah to take stake in Petronas’ third FLNG

SMJ Energy, owned by the Sabah government, has signed a heads of agreement with Malaysian energy giant Petronas to take a 25 percent stake in the latter's third floating LNG production unit.

Japan’s LNG imports drop in June

Japan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports dropped by 2.8 percent in June compared to the same month last year, according to provisional data released by the country’s Ministry of Finance.

More News Like This

South Korea gets first LNG Canada cargo

The 174,000-cbm GasLog Glasgow, which is carrying the first liquefied natural gas cargo produced at the Shell-led LNG Canada facility in Kitimat, has arrived in Tongyeong, South Korea, according to shipping data.

LNG Canada to send third cargo

Shell-led LNG Canada is expected to soon ship the third cargo of liquefied natural gas from the Kitimat facility, according to shipping data.

Novatek’s gas sales climb in Q2

Russian LNG exporter Novatek reported a rise in its natural gas sales, including LNG, in the second quarter of this year.

Victrol: LNG London hits bunkering milestone

The Shell-chartered inland bunkering vessel LNG London, owned by a joint venture of Belgium's Victrol and France's Sogestran, has reached a new operational milestone.