Russia’s long-idle Arctic LNG-2 project has dispatched its first successful shipment of liquefied natural gas to China, a milestone arriving just days before President Vladimir Putin’s highly anticipated visit to Beijing. According to ship-tracking data from Kpler and LSEG, the tanker Arctic Mulan docked at the Beihai LNG terminal in Guangxi province this week, delivering the first end-user cargo from the sanctioned Arctic LNG-2 facility since operations began last year . The vessel, part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet,” loaded the LNG from a storage hub in Russia’s Far East that exclusively handles Arctic LNG-2 cargoes.
This delivery marks a potential watershed moment in the geopolitics of energy trade, as China may be testing Western resolve regarding sanctions enforcement. Energy analyst Anne-Sophie Corbeau from Columbia University remarked that “China and Russia are testing the waters,” suggesting that a non-reaction from the U.S. could pave the way for more sanctioned LNG cargoes reaching Asia, possibly including India. FGE’s Siamak Adibi added that the operation likely has political approval and seems designed to minimize sanctions exposure for the Chinese terminal operator.
The Arctic LNG-2 plant, one of Russia’s most ambitious energy projects, projected to produce up to 19.8 million tonnes annually, is a lifeline for Moscow’s global LNG ambitions. Should sanctions be lifted, analysts estimate that up to 12 million tonnes per year could flow onto international markets from this project. Until now, a combination of U.S. and EU sanctions had effectively blocked any deliveries past Russian ports, rendering the project stranded for over a year.
This first shipment arrives ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin, where Putin is expected to meet President Xi Jinping and more than 20 world leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Modi. It may signal a strategic advantage for Moscow, showcasing its ability to bypass Western constraints through deepening ties with Beijing.
