Russia is profiting significantly from liquefied natural gas sales to companies in the European Union, according to a study by the environmental organisation Greenpeace published on Tuesday.

Oil and coal imports from Russia were virtually banned under EU sanctions over Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and pipeline gas imports.

These fell sharply after the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines in September 2022.

LNG imports, however, have been exempt from sanctions so far.

Greenpeace estimates that Yamal LNG, Russia’s main exporter of LNG, earned a total of $40 billion from global exports between 2022 and 2024.

It has an estimated $9.5 billion, which was paid into the Russian treasury in tax revenues.

EU companies ranked among the biggest clients of Russia’s Yamal LNG, with France’s TotalEnergies topping the list.

China’s state-owned CNPC took second place, followed by Germany’s SEFE in third and Spain’s Naturgy in fourth place.

TotalEnergies contributed an estimated $2.5 billion to the Russian government’s tax income, SEFE $1.45 billion, and Naturgy $1.25 billion, Greenpeace said.

With a total of $9.5 billion in profit tax revenues from Yamal LNG’s exports, Moscow could afford approximately 271,000 Shahed combat drones.

A 2,686 T-90M main battle tank, or 9.5 million 152-millimetre artillery shells, Greenpeace said.

The stated amount of artillery shells corresponds to approximately three years of Russia’s current annual production of three million rounds.

The cited number of drones represented a quantity roughly 271 times greater than what Russia deployed against Ukraine in one week.

Greenpeace also noted that the EU’s main importers of Russian LNG – France, Spain, Belgium, and the Netherlands – have spent more on importing Russian gas than on support for Ukraine.

Between 2022 and June 2025, the four countries imported €34.3 billion ($40.3 billion) worth of Russian LNG while providing 21.2 billion euros in support to Ukraine.

This is according to the report released.

The study also notes that the French group TotalEnergies holds a 20 per cent stake in Yamal LNG and a 19.4 per cent stake in its parent company, Novatek.

Since 2022, TotalEnergies has received an estimated $5.06 billion in dividends from Yamal LNG and an additional $1.74 billion in dividends from Novatek, according to the authors.

European energy companies defended their continued business with Yamal LNG, citing demand and long-term contracts.

The German company SEFE is tied to Yamal LNG through contracts that extend until 2038.

The company was formerly known as Gazprom Germania and was a subsidiary of the Russian state-owned company Gazprom.

It was nationalised as a result of the Russian war against Ukraine and the subsequent energy crisis in Germany. 

(dpa/NAN)