TotalEnergies has initiated a force majeure process on the Arctic LNG 2 project in Russia due to US sanctions.

“We have initiated the force majeure process in accordance with existing contracts, and we will comply with applicable sanctions regimes in accordance with our principles of conduct,” TotalEnergies said in a statement, adding that consequently, no offtake of LNG from Arctic LNG 2 by TotalEnergies is planned for 2024.

The US sanctions were imposed on Arctic LNG 2 over the conflict in Ukraine in November 2023. As a result, in December, foreign shareholders in the project suspended their participation, according to the Russian daily Kommersant, which cited unnamed sources in the Russian government.

Notably, the Arctic LNG 2 project that is located on the Gydan Peninsula in the Arctic, aims to increase Russia’s LNG global market share to 20% by 2030 from 8%, but the current sanctions have put a halt to these plans in addition to a lack of gas carriers, according to Reuters.