Yuri Kobzar17:55, 24.10.26

The money for the American project was provided by a Russian company that is formally under American sanctions.

Russian energy giant Novatek, which is under partial US sanctions, may have secretly financed the American company Polar LNG, which plans to extract and export liquefied natural gas from Alaska . The New York Times reports this, citing documents, correspondence and testimonies of former company executives.

The project was discussed as part of the contacts between the administration of US President Donald Trump and the Kremlin aimed at resolving the war in Ukraine. According to the publication, Vladimir Putin raised the issue during talks with Trump’s special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. At the same time, there is no evidence that American representatives knew about Polar LNG’s ties to Novatek.

Former Polar LNG CEO Joel Riddle, who stepped down in September, said he initially believed the startup was being funded by a company in the United Arab Emirates. But he later learned that a Russian company was directly involved in financing the project. Legal memos prepared by Baker Botts also indicated concerns among U.S. officials about potential sanctions violations.

“It is not only illegal, but also not in the interests of the United States to allow Russian technology to control the commercial development of Arctic gas on the North Coast of Alaska,” Riddle said.

According to the NYT, during a meeting in Abu Dhabi in late August, representatives of Polar LNG and its parent company, Tech Wave Industrial Projects Management, spoke with Novatek executives. According to reports reviewed by the publication, Russian managers discussed the possibility of providing up to $15 million to finance the American project. In early September, Novatek Deputy Chairman Denis Solovyov wrote to Riddle: “All necessary decisions were made at the meeting in Abu Dhabi. The first $5 million should have arrived by today.”

Riddle and two other senior Polar LNG executives soon left the company. The former executive said they had urged the US administration to investigate possible Russian funding. Polar LNG itself called Riddle a disgruntled former employee and announced an investigation into the claims against him. Novatek, for its part, said it was seeking minority shareholder status in the project.

The plan involves building a massive offshore platform off the coast of Alaska to liquefy gas, a byproduct of oil production in the region. Currently, local oil companies mostly pump the gas back into the ground due to a lack of transportation options.

However, the plan requires numerous permits, including due to sanctions against Novatek. The project also faces technical challenges, environmental risks and competition from a larger $50 billion pipeline plan.

Former US diplomat Jeffrey Pyatt has sharply criticized the initiative, calling it dangerous for the environment, the economy and geopolitical interests of the US. He also warned that the cooperation could create the impression that Putin would be allowed to escape the consequences of his actions.

(C)UNIAN 2026