Putin to Only Entertain "Friendly" Nations in Energy Projects

Putin reiterated his stance this week that Russia will only allow “friendly” countries to join its oil and gas projects.

• "We will allow our friends and partners to join," Putin said, adding "Why not? Just like we did with the Europeans, with the Americans. But they prefer to leave our market.”
• "Let them go any way they want. Is that good for them? I think, it’s in fact bad. They suffer losses as they leave. Whoever wants to, let him come in. We are open for cooperation. And this process will continue, whether we are ready for it or not. But we have been preparing for this for a long time, for many years, and we will continue this process further. I don’t see any insurmountable obstacles here and no issues that we would not be able to solve. Everything will be solved," Putin said.
• Shell has walked away from its stake in Sakhalin-2, while Exxon has done the same for its Sakhalin-1 stake. TotalEnergies has stated it is winding down its interests in the country.
• Russia has been exploring numerous energy deals and projects to divert its energy resources away from western sanctions. Oil flows have proved resilient but alternative markets for gas and oil products are proving harder to place.