US to continue to 'tighten the screws' on Russian LNG exports, senior official says

The U.S. will continue to "tighten the screws" on the export of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) to deprive Moscow of energy revenues, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 22, citing Jeffrey Pyatt, the assistant secretary of state for energy resources.

Washington slapped sanctions against Arctic LNG 2 in 2023 and started imposing restrictions on ships that began taking LNG from the plant this August.

Arctic LNG 2, owned by Russia's Novatek company, aims to produce almost 20 million metric tons of LNG per year to sell primarily to Asian markets, potentially generating billions of dollars in revenue.

Washington has not imposed sanctions on other Russian LNG plants, including Yamal and Portovaya, which continue to supply liquefied natural gas to Europe and Asia. If sanctioned, this can likely lead to a reduction in global LNG supplies and higher prices, Bloomberg reported.

According to Pyatt, the U.S. aims to reduce the revenues Russia receives from its oil and gas resources. He said that such a "policy is working," and the U.S. is closely monitoring where the sanctioned Russian cargoes are heading.

"You can be assured that the Biden administration is going to continue to tighten the screws against Russia’s LNG exports," the senior official added.

The Financial Times reported in July that Russia is likely expanding its "ghost fleet" of tankers, created primarily to avoid Western oil sanctions, to LNG exports as well.