The Fedor Litke is one of several tankers ferrying LNG between Russia and the EU. Photo: dmitry-v-ch-l (livejournal.com)
Germany’s state-owned energy company SEFE, formerly part of Gazprom, is continuing to purchase large volumes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Russian energy giant Novatek, according to an investigation by German broadcaster Südwestrundfunk (SWR). At least 50 shipments of Russian LNG worth over €2 billion are expected to reach Europe in 2025 alone.
SWR found that vessels carrying Russian gas regularly dock in France, Belgium, and Spain. The fuel is then fed into the European grid. The main supplier is Novatek, a company in which close Putin associate Gennady Timchenko holds a 23% stake. Timchenko has been named in Western media reports as a financial backer of the Redut paramilitary group, which has fought in Syria and Ukraine. Novatek is under U.S., Canadian, British, and Australian sanctions, but is notably missing from the EU sanctions list.
SEFE told SWR that the purchases are being made under a “non-cancellable long-term contract” signed before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The company claimed that walking away from the contract would lead to financial penalties and allow Russia to resell the gas to other buyers.
Environmentalists and politicians have strongly criticized this arrangement, calling it a “license to print money for the Russian army.” Julian Schwartzkopff, a gas analyst with Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH), stressed that:
“SEFE contributes significantly to Russia's growing revenues from LNG trade, which pumps more money into Russian war coffers than Ukraine receives in humanitarian aid.”
According to the Finnish think tank CREA, Novatek pays a 34% tax on EU gas profits, with nearly half of that revenue going directly to Russia’s state budget. As an anonymous Russian gas trader told SWR:
“Although Novatek is not a Russian state-controlled company, it is majority-owned by the Putin-affiliated oligarch Timchenko, who was with Putin in the KGB. All information about Novatek and its majority shareholders is freely available. Those responsible for SEFE must be aware of what they are doing.”
Exporting LNG remains a personal priority for Putin, who has frequently attended ribbon-cutting ceremonies at Novatek’s Siberian facilities. One top Novatek executive is a known business partner of Putin’s daughter, Maria Vorontsova. Novatek’s CEO Leonid Mikhelson has also been sanctioned by the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia — but not the EU.
While the European Commission has pledged to phase out Russian gas imports entirely by 2027, SEFE will continue honoring its commitments to Novatek until then. Germany’s Economy Ministry told SWR that it supports a gradual transition away from Russian energy in order to balance concerns about supply security and price stability.
Despite EU rhetoric about cutting ties with Moscow, LNG imports into the bloc have continued reinforcing Russia’s war budget — circumventing sanctions and casting doubt on Europe’s promises of energy independence.
According to an investigation by the independent Russian outlet in exile Important Stories, Novatek — SEFE’s main LNG import partner — is not only tied to the Russian state, but also facilitates direct payments to mercenaries fighting in Ukraine. The company funded the “Muzhestvo” (lit. “Courage”) foundation, which reportedly made regular payments to security personnel recruited for the frontlines. One such individual, Igor Kozhushko, was deployed with Russia’s 200th Motor Rifle Brigade in Ukraine and killed in action. His recruitment and compensation were arranged through private security firms closely linked to Novatek.