European companies continue to indirectly support russian gas sector

A recent investigation has exposed systemic violations of the sanctions regime by leading European energy companies. Despite official restrictions, Shell and other European companies continue to indirectly support the russian gas sector. This is stated in an article that Razom We Stand project coordinator Ilia Zaslavskyi wrote for the Ukrainian News Agency.

The study showed that the companies are actually circumventing the sanctions restrictions by using complex supply schemes. In particular, Shell purchased shipments of liquefied natural gas, the transportation of which was carried out by sanctioned nuclear icebreakers of Atomflot.

"European companies such as TotalEnergies and Naturgy have long-term contracts that support russian energy exports," the investigation notes.

British legal experts argue that even indirect financial benefits to sanctioned companies may constitute a violation of the law. Despite the restrictions, russian LNG exports remain consistently high, allowing the Kremlin to continue to receive critical revenues.

The authors of the investigation call on governments to strengthen control over supply chains, introduce clearer monitoring mechanisms and hold accountable companies that violate the spirit of sanctions. The main goal of these efforts is to deprive russia of financial support for its military actions in Ukraine.

As previously reported, Shell predicts that global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) will increase by 60% by 2040.