South Korea's LNG Imports from Russia Hit Highest Level Since 2021 in September

Overall, South Korea's total LNG imports in September reached 3.56 million tons

Moscow, October 15. /TASS/. South Korea bought 326,000 tons of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) worth $250 million in September, the largest monthly import volume from Russia since November 2021, TASS analysis of the country's customs data showed.

Overall, South Korea's total LNG imports in September reached 3.56 million tonnes (down 8% from a year earlier, but up 14% from August 2026), valued at $3 billion. The leading suppliers were Australia (1.33 million tonnes), the United States (436,000 tonnes) and Canada (426,000 tonnes).

Gas shipments from Qatar, one of South Korea's main LNG partners, remain suspended. In early March, Qatar halted liquefied natural gas production following Iranian airstrikes. Subsequently, state-owned Qatar Energy declared force majeure on LNG supplies.

In addition, 414,000 tonnes were supplied by Malaysia, 203,000 tonnes by Peru, 165,000 tonnes again from China and 123,000 tonnes from Indonesia. Other countries supplied less than 100,000 tons each.

In January-September 2026, South Korea cut total LNG imports by 6.4 percent to 32.9 million tons, valued at $20.6 billion. In particular, LNG shipments from Russia decreased by 12.7% to 1.41 million tons, valued at $853 million.

Russia currently operates two large-scale LNG projects: Yamal LNG and Sakhalin-2. Another project, Arctic LNG 2 (first train), has yet to be officially launched, although individual shipments to China have been reported. Russia also operates two medium-scale Baltic LNG plants - Gazprom LNG Portovaya and Cryogaz Vysotsk - both of which have been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department.