Russia's Gazprom Ships First LNG Cargo from Portovaya to Spain

FILE PHOTO: Gas pipelines are pictured at the Atamanskaya compressor station, facility of Gazprom's Power Of Siberia 1 project outside the far eastern town of Svobodny, in Amur region, Russia November 29, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Gas pipelines are pictured at the Atamanskaya compressor station, facility of Gazprom's Power Of Siberia 1 project outside the far eastern town of Svobodny, in Amur region, Russia November 29, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo
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Russia's Gazprom Ships First LNG Cargo from Portovaya to Spain

FILE PHOTO: Gas pipelines are pictured at the Atamanskaya compressor station, facility of Gazprom's Power Of Siberia 1 project outside the far eastern town of Svobodny, in Amur region, Russia November 29, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Gas pipelines are pictured at the Atamanskaya compressor station, facility of Gazprom's Power Of Siberia 1 project outside the far eastern town of Svobodny, in Amur region, Russia November 29, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File Photo

Russia's Gazprom shipped a cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from its small-scale Portovaya LNG plant on the Baltic Sea to Spain for the first time, LSEG data showed on Monday.
LNG, unlike some other Russian hydrocarbons, such as crude oil, has not been under the Western sanctions.
The tanker, the Cool Rover, which loaded LNG ship-to-ship from the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), the Marshal Vasilevskiy, discharged in the Spanish port of Huelva at the Enagas LNG terminal, the data showed.
Gazprom and Portovaya LNG did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.
State-controlled Gazprom has practically lost the European pipeline gas export market, once the main source of foreign currency revenues for Moscow.
Russia supplied a total of around 63.8 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas to Europe by various routes via pipelines in 2022, according to Gazprom data and Reuters calculations. The volumes plummeted further, by 55.6%, to 28.3 bcm last year.
The Portovaya LNG plant with a capacity of 1.5 million metric tons per year was launched in September 2022.
Most LNG cargoes from the plant have been sent to Turkey or Greece, while three were shipped to China.



China Issues Tax Refund Policies for Foreign Tourists to Boost Inbound Consumption

People walk in the Central Business District (CBD) area in Beijing in Beijing, China, 24 April 2025.  EPA/WU HAO
People walk in the Central Business District (CBD) area in Beijing in Beijing, China, 24 April 2025. EPA/WU HAO
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China Issues Tax Refund Policies for Foreign Tourists to Boost Inbound Consumption

People walk in the Central Business District (CBD) area in Beijing in Beijing, China, 24 April 2025.  EPA/WU HAO
People walk in the Central Business District (CBD) area in Beijing in Beijing, China, 24 April 2025. EPA/WU HAO

China said on Sunday it will improve tax refund policies for foreign tourists to boost inbound consumption, part of efforts to boost the economy as domestic demand remains tepid.

China will promote the expansion of tax refund stores in shopping areas, scenic spots, airports and hotels, according to a statement released jointly by the commerce ministry and other departments.

The minimum refund point for one overseas traveler in the same tax-refund shop on the same day will be lowered to 200 yuan ($27.45) from 500 yuan before, the statement said.