Shell continues to trade Russian gas, despite vowing not to

2023-07-02 14:57:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Energy company Shell is continuing to trade Russian gas, more than a year after it vowed to withdraw from the Russian energy market.

According to analysis by the Global Witness group, the company was involved in nearly an eighth of Russian gas exports transported by ships during 2022.

Oleg Ustenko, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, accused Shell of accepting "blood money".

Shell said the reported exports were the result of "long-term contractual commitments" and did not constitute a breach of laws or sanctions, reports the British public broadcaster, the BBC.

By May 9, a large tanker, capable of carrying more than 160,000 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas, left the port of Sabetta, in northern Russia. This cargo was purchased by Shell before it left for its final destination, Hong Kong.

This is one of eight cargoes of liquefied natural gas that Shell has bought from Yamal this year, according to data from the Kpler database analyzed by Global Witness. Last year Shell accounted for 12 percent of the trade for liquefied natural gas, Global Witness estimates, and was among the top five traders of this gas originating in Russia that year.

In March 2022, in the weeks following the invasion of Ukraine, Shell apologized for buying a cargo of Russian oil and said it intended to withdraw from Russian oil and gas.

The company said it would stop buying Russian oil, sell its service stations and other businesses in Russia, which it has done. It has also closed its joint ventures with the Russian state energy giant, Gazprom.

Shell said it would begin to withdraw from Russian oil and gas products, but warned that this would be a "complex challenge". Since then, Shell has continued to receive cargoes of liquefied natural gas from two Russian ports, one in Yamal and one in Sakhalin.

Oleg Ustenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said that ""it's very simple: by continuing to trade Russian gas, Shell is putting money in Putin's pockets and helping to finance Russia's brutal aggression against the people of Ukraine."

A Shell spokesman said that “there is a dilemma between putting pressure on the Russian government for its atrocities in Ukraine and ensuring stable energy supplies. It is up to the governments to decide on the extremely difficult compromises that need to be made."

Shell is the world's largest trader of unsanctioned liquefied natural gas in Europe, driving billions of dollars in oil and gas trading profits over the past year.

Russia significantly reduced its pipeline gas supplies last year, but has increased the amount of gas it ships by ship, including to Europe.

The UK has not imported any Russian gas for over a year, while EU politicians are scrambling to reduce the amount of Russian liquefied natural gas the entire European bloc imports. In March, the EU Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson, called on countries and companies to stop buying Russian gas and not to sign new contracts./ Rel