EU Lawmakers Urge Denmark’s Fayard to Halt Servicing of Russian Arctic LNG Fleet

More than 100 lawmakers from the European Parliament and national legislatures across Europe have called on Denmark’s Fayard shipyard to immediately stop servicing specialized LNG carriers that transport Russian Arctic gas, intensifying pressure on the last European shipyard still maintaining the icebreaking vessels critical to Moscow’s Yamal LNG export project.

The appeal, organized by advocacy group Urgewald and backed by lawmakers from across the political spectrum, argues that maintenance work carried out this summer could help extend the operational life of Russia’s specialized Arc7 LNG fleet for years, undermining European efforts to curb Kremlin energy revenues after the European Union’s Russian LNG restrictions take full effect in 2027.

“Every Arc7 tanker serviced in Denmark helps preserve one of the Kremlin’s most strategically important energy projects,” Ukrainian presidential sanctions adviser Vladyslav Vlasiuk said in a statement accompanying the appeal.

Danish Member of the European Parliament Villy Søvndal, one of the signatories, said European companies should not exploit “a final loophole for short-term profit,” arguing that Denmark’s strong political support for Ukraine should also be reflected by its private sector.

The campaign targets Fayard because it has become the sole remaining European shipyard capable of carrying out major maintenance on the fleet of Arc7 LNG carriers that serve Novatek’s Yamal LNG project in Russia’s Arctic. The highly specialized vessels, designed to break through thick sea ice while transporting liquefied natural gas year-round, require periodic drydock overhauls after operating in some of the world’s harshest maritime conditions.

Dutch-owned Damen Shiprepair Brest, previously the only other European yard servicing the vessels, stopped accepting Russian LNG carriers after completing its final Arc7 maintenance project in 2024, leaving Fayard as the fleet’s last repair option within the European Union.

Campaigners estimate that as many as six Arc7 carriers could undergo maintenance at Fayard during the summer of 2026 before new EU rules prohibiting maritime services for LNG vessels operating in Russia enter into force on Jan. 1, 2027. Because major overhauls are typically performed roughly every three years, critics argue the work would effectively provide Russia’s Arctic LNG fleet with a fresh maintenance cycle before sanctions eliminate access to European repair facilities.

The Arc7 fleet represents a critical logistical bottleneck for Yamal LNG, as conventional LNG carriers cannot independently navigate the ice-covered Northern Sea Route throughout the year. Each vessel has transported an average of about 5.3 million metric tons of Russian LNG since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, representing cargoes valued at roughly 4 billion euros, according to Urgewald’s analysis.

The organization estimates the six vessels expected to require servicing this year have collectively transported more than 32 billion euros worth of Russian LNG over their operating lifetimes.

Yamal LNG accounts for more than 60% of Russia’s LNG exports and remains one of Novatek’s flagship projects, generating billions of euros annually from gas sales despite sweeping Western sanctions imposed following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While the project itself has largely escaped direct Western sanctions, the EU has approved a phased ban that will prohibit imports of Russian LNG from January 2027 while also barring EU companies from transporting Russian LNG regardless of destination.

Fayard has previously defended the work, saying the maintenance complies with current EU sanctions and supports maritime safety while Europe continues importing Russian LNG ahead of the 2027 phaseout. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has nevertheless described the servicing of the vessels as “completely incomprehensible” and said it should stop.

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