Russian firm seeks Alaska gas stake
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The gist
Novatek signed a memo with US firm Polar Train LNG on a $25 billion Alaska gas project.
The venture's ex-CEO says Novatek secretly financed and controlled it; the company denies it.
Background
Novatek is a Russian energy group that developed Arctic LNG 2, a gas facility on Russia's Siberian northern coast that the US Treasury blacklisted in 2023 under sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Polar Train LNG (also called Polar LNG) is a US company developing a $25 billion gas export terminal on Alaska's North Slope, launched in March 2026. The project drew scrutiny after its former chief executive, Joel Riddle, an American former ExxonMobil engineer, resigned in September and alleged Novatek was secretly financing and directing the venture without US authorization. The New York Times reported the deal has also come up in talks to end the war in Ukraine.
How it unfolded
- Mar 2026Polar LNG is launched, planning a nearshore liquefied natural gas project.
- Apr 2026Novatek signs a memorandum of understanding with Polar Train while Riddle is still chief executive.
- Sep 2026Joel Riddle resigns as chief executive, followed by almost the entire executive leadership team, including the chief financial officer and other senior executives.
- Oct 23, 2026The New York Times reports that interviews and documents show a Russian energy giant secretly funded a US firm, and that the deal has been discussed in talks to end the war in Ukraine.
- Oct 24, 2026Reports say senior executives resigned from the $25 billion Alaska LNG venture after Riddle alleged Novatek was secretly financing and controlling it without US authorization.
Who’s saying what
- Former CEO
- Joel Riddle says he resigned because he felt uncomfortable that Novatek was financing and ultimately controlling the company's strategic direction, and that he was misled about start-up funding that ostensibly came from a company in the United Arab Emirates.
- Company
- Polar LNG disputes Riddle's account, calls him a disgruntled employee who was terminated, and says development activities are being pursued in full compliance with applicable US laws.
- Novatek
- Novatek says it agreed to let Tech Wave use its technology in Alaska and signed the April memorandum with Riddle still chief executive, acknowledges US and Russian approvals would be required, and denies that technology access was conditional on lifting sanctions against Arctic LNG 2.
- Official
- A Treasury Department official told the FT the department does not comment on specific allegations of sanctions violations but takes potential breaches extremely seriously; a White House official said the project was mentioned only briefly to the administration with no detailed discussions.
Still unverified
People familiar with the discussions say the proposed US-Russia arrangement would have Novatek contribute its expertise to the Alaska facility in exchange for sanctions relief for Arctic LNG 2. Riddle's allegations that Novatek secretly financed and controlled the venture without necessary US authorization are disputed by Polar LNG, which says he was terminated.