Fourth sanctioned Russian LNG carrier arrives at Chinese port: CAS

A fourth sanctioned Russian LNG carrier arrived at the Tieshan terminal in the Port of Beihai, southern China, on Sept. 12, just two days after the previous ship departed the terminal, according to S&P Global Commodities at Sea.

The Buran -- formerly known as North Air -- arrived at the Tieshan terminal in the Port of Beihai at 0503 GMT on Sept. 12, with an indicated draft of 11.6 meters, CAS data showed.

The Buran is laden with an Arctic LNG 2 cargo, half of which has been sourced from the Murmansk transshipment terminal and the remaining half from the LNG facility, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The arrival of the Buran follows the departure of the third sanctioned Russian LNG tanker, the Zarya -- formerly known as the North Way -- which left the Tieshan terminal with an indicated draft of 11.5 meters at 0831 GMT on Sept. 10, according to CAS.

The indicated draft of the Zarya decreased to 9.3 meters from 11.5 meters, according to CAS, suggesting that its cargo has been discharged.

The other two LNG carriers -- the Voskhod and the Arctic Mulan -- had also arrived at the Tieshan terminal, with indications that their cargoes were discharged after calling at Arctic LNG 2 facilities.

The US government has issued fresh warnings that engaging in business with Russia's Arctic LNG 2 poses a "significant sanctions risk," a State Department spokesperson told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy.

"Sanctions on Russia, including on Arctic LNG 2, remain in place. Those doing business with sanctioned entities such as Arctic LNG 2 face significant sanctions risk," the State Department spokesperson said Sept. 10, responding to questions about China's apparent increase in intake of Russia's Arctic LNG 2 cargoes at Beihai since the end of August.

"Further, any foreign financial institution processing transactions for an entity sanctioned under our Russia program can be sanctioned by the US government."

Located in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in southwestern China, the Beihai LNG terminal has a receiving capacity of 6 million metric tons per year.

The terminal features a dedicated berth capable of accommodating LNG carriers ranging from 80,000 cu m to 266,000 cu m, along with four LNG storage tanks, each with a capacity of 160,000 cu m.

The terminal is currently operated by China's national energy infrastructure company, the National Oil and Gas Pipeline Network Group, or PipeChina.

According to public business registration information, PipeChina is jointly owned by several state-owned enterprises and organizations, including PetroChina (29.9%), Sinopec (14%) and CNOOC (2.9%).

Other ships

The Iris was sailing southwest, heading south of Hainan Island in the South China Sea, at 0215 GMT on Sept. 12.

In June, after the commissioning of the second train, CAS data showed that loadings from the Arctic LNG 2 project had resumed, with the Iris arriving at the site June 26.

Another sanctioned tanker -- the La Perouse -- called at Arctic LNG 2 on Aug. 27, according to CAS. It is the first of the recently loaded ships to have traveled west, rather than east, along the Northern Sea Route.

As of 0541 GMT on Sept. 12, the La Perouse was heading south of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

The La Perouse -- formerly called the SCF La Perouse -- was sanctioned by the UK in September 2024.

The North Sky and several other LNG ships linked to the Arctic LNG 2 project were sanctioned by the US in August 2024 as part of Washington's crackdown on Russian energy exports.

Novatek holds a 60% stake in Arctic LNG 2, alongside France's TotalEnergies, China's CNPC and CNOOC, and Japan Arctic LNG, all of which have 10% stakes.

Japan Arctic LNG BV is a Dutch corporation that is 75% owned by JOGMEC and 25% owned by Mitsui.