Russian Novatek has dismissed sanctions in opposition to its Arctic LNG 2 challenge imposed by Washington final week as a determined try to preserve worldwide gasoline costs excessive, Interfax reported on Monday.
Novatek, based by Leonid Mikhelson, is Russia’s largest personal gasoline group, and its founder, and its partnership with French TotalEnergies (NYSE:TTE) has been below scrutiny since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Interfax quoted Mikhelson as describing U.S. sanctions as “excessive reward for our professionalism” and designed to learn North American LNG gamers trying to drive costs larger. The $25-billion Arctic LNG-2 challenge is Russia’s second main LNG challenge, and the brand new sanctions prohibit all associated transactions with no particular license from OFAC till 31 January 2024. The complete scope of the sanctions stays unclear, sparking a press release from TotalEnergies that it’s at present assessing the influence. Novatek has a 60% curiosity within the challenge, with TotalEnergies and Chinese language firms CNPC and CNOOC every holding 10%, together with 10% for a separate consortium of Japan’s Mitsui and JOGMEC. TotalEnergies additionally owns a further 21.% within the challenge by means of its shareholding Novatek. Lengthy-term provide contracts at the moment are in query, as is future financing of the challenge.
“The results of the designation of Arctic LNG 2 as an SDN entity by the US authorities on TotalEnergies’ contractual commitments to Arctic LNG 2 are at present being assessed,” a consultant for TotalEnergies was quoted as saying by Reuters.TotalEnergies has suffered $14.8 billion in asset writedowns associated to Russia operations in 2022, along with a $ 4.1 billion Q1 2022 impairment for the Arctic LNG-2 challenge. New sanctions on Novatek come amid affirmation on Monday that Putin will formally run for president in 2024 elections, gunning for his fifth time period, in keeping with a Reuters report citing nameless sources.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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