Russian LNG under US sanctions sent to India for the first time - media
Kyiv • UNN
The tanker Kunpeng is transporting a batch of LNG from the Portovaya plant to the Indian terminal Dahej. This is Russia's first attempt to open a new market after US sanctions.
A cargo of liquefied natural gas from Russia's sanctioned Portovaya plant on the Baltic Sea is headed for India, LSEG shipping data showed on Wednesday, UNN reports with reference to Reuters.
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If it reaches its destination, it will be the first such delivery to India since US President Donald Trump said last year that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured him that India would stop buying Russian energy, the publication writes.
India has never publicly confirmed such promises and has stated that its purchasing decisions are guided by price, security of supply, and consumer interests. As one of the world's largest energy importers, it is now severely affected by disruptions and rising prices caused by the war in the Middle East and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The small Portovaya plant, with a production capacity of 1.5 million tons of LNG per year, began operations in September 2022.
Exports from the plant were interrupted by additional sanctions imposed in January 2025 in connection with the war in Ukraine, to undermine Russia's ability to produce and export LNG and reduce its trade revenues.
Until now, Russia has supplied sanctioned LNG to the Chinese port of Beihai from Portovaya, as well as from its Arctic LNG-2 plant.
Earlier on Wednesday, Russian energy giant Gazprom delivered a second post-sanctions LNG cargo from the Portovaya plant to China, LSEG data showed.
If India buys Russian LNG, it will create another market, as Kremlin head Vladimir Putin seeks to redirect LNG from Europe before the European Union bans Russian LNG imports from 2027.
According to LSEG, the 138,200 cubic meter Kunpeng tanker is heading to the Dahej LNG import terminal in western India.
"If this cargo is delivered, it will open a second market for sanctioned Russian LNG, as all previous deliveries from sanctioned Russian terminals have been to China's Beihai," said Martin Senior, head of LNG pricing at industry publication Argus.
Before the sanctions, Portovaya shipped an average of two cargoes per month during the winter. Since March 2025, in addition to two deliveries to China, it has been sending one cargo per month to the Russian western exclave of Kaliningrad.