Shell continues to trade Russian gas despite promising to withdraw from the Russian market

This is reported by the BBC.

It is noted that analysts from the Global Witness group have studied Shell's activities in 2022. According to the analysis, the company was involved in almost an eighth of Russia's offshore gas exports.

Earlier, Shell explained its market ties with Russia by saying that the deals were the result of "long-term contractual obligations" and did not violate laws or sanctions.

In May, a huge tanker capable of carrying more than 160,000 cubic metres of gas left the port of Sabetta on the Yamal Peninsula in northern Russia. This cargo was purchased by Shell and shipped to Hong Kong.

In March 2022, a few weeks after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Shell apologised for buying oil from Russia. At the time, the company stated that it planned to abandon Russian oil and gas.

In addition, Shell assured that it would stop buying Russian oil, sell its petrol stations and other businesses in Russia, and begin a "phased transition away from Russian petroleum products, pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas".

Instead, the company still receives gas cargoes from two Russian ports: Yamal and Sakhalin. Shell used to be a minority investor in the Sakhalin gas project, but gave up that claim last September after the Russian government transferred its shares to local businesses, and has not taken any gas from Sakhalin since.

However, Shell is thus fulfilling a contract with Russia's Novatek that obliges it to buy 900,000 tonnes of gas a year from Yamal until the 2030s. 

"Novatek is Russia's second biggest gas company, and the taxes it pays are a significant contributor to the Russian government's budget”

Oleh Ustenko, an economist and advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, accused Shell of accepting "blood money".

"It is quite simple: by continuing to trade in Russian gas Shell is putting money into Putin's pockets and helping to fund Russia's brutal aggression against the people of Ukraine," Ustenko said.

What is known about sanctions against Russia

A new package of sanctions against Russia was supposed to be adopted by the end of May, but Budapest demanded that three Hungarian companies be removed from the list. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that due to Ukraine's inclusion of the Hungarian OTP Bank in the list of war sponsors, it would be difficult for Budapest to agree with the EU on new sanctions against Russia.

Greece and Switzerland also demanded that its companies be removed from the list.

On 8 May, the Financial Times reported that the European Union may impose sanctions on several Chinese companies for supplying electronics to Russia.

In June, Politico reported that Germany, France, and several other EU member states fear that measures aimed at preventing Russians from circumventing sanctions could have a negative impact on diplomatic relations.

On 15 June, Bloomberg reported that the EU may remove 5 Chinese companies linked to Russia from the new sanctions list.

On 21 June, EU ambassadors agreed on a new package of sanctions against Russia, which includes the elimination of loopholes that help Russian occupiers circumvent previously imposed restrictions. Also on 30 June, the EU sanctions against Russia were extended for six months.