Gazprom, the Russian gas company, achieves £39 million in profits in the North Sea.

Russian energy company Gazprom generated €45 million in revenue from its gas field in the North Sea last year, according to its accounts. The gas field, known as Sillimanite, is located in both UK and Dutch waters and has been in operation since 2020. However, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Sir Ed Davey, criticized the situation, stating that it was unacceptable for gas produced from UK territory to support "Putin's illegal war against Ukraine." The UK government pledged to intensify economic pressure on Russia. While the arrangement itself is not illegal, the UK, the US, and the EU have imposed strict economic sanctions to limit Russia's ability to profit from energy exports and fund the conflict in Ukraine. Gazprom executives, including CEO Alexei Miller, are under UK sanctions. Gazprom International UK, a subsidiary of the company, made a pre-tax profit of €45 million in 2022 and paid a dividend of €41 million to its immediate owner in the Netherlands, Gazprom International Projects BV. An additional dividend of €1.7 million was paid this year. Gazprom is majority-owned by the Russian state and is Russia's largest taxpayer, contributing $80 billion to the government. It has also deployed its own militias to fight in Ukraine. Criticism of Gazprom's operations in the UK has come from campaign group Global Witness, calling it a problem within the UK's approach to Russian oil and gas. The UK government expressed its commitment to deny Russia access to goods and technologies that could aid its war efforts, stating that Putin and his supporters must be held accountable for the invasion of Ukraine. Gazprom's total tax bill of €29 million was divided between the UK and Dutch governments. The company's revenues come solely from sales outside the UK. Last year, Gazprom's UK energy supply business was nationalized when its parent company faced bankruptcy and is now named SEFE Energy. Gazprom and German company Wintershall, which operates the Sillimanite field as a joint venture, did not respond to requests for comment.