Gazprom shrugs off Ukraine sanctions to report record results

Russia’s Gazprom has reported record results despite a barrage of sanctions imposed by the West.

Swathes of cash have continued to pour in for the Kremlin-backed oil giant, as it declared £36billion profit for the first half of 2022.

This has sparked huge dividend payments for shareholders, including £8.6billion for Vladimir Putin’s Russian government, which holds a majority stake.

Gazprom’s board said on Tuesday it was paying an interim dividend of 51.03 roubles per share, with the total overall payout worth £17billion. This remains subject to shareholder approval at a vote in late September.

Gazprom did not pay a dividend for the full year in 2021.

Deputy chief executive Famil Sadygov said Gazprom had boasted record figures ‘despite sanctions pressure and an unfavourable external environment’.

Britain and other Western countries have pursued strict sanctions against Russia since it launched its war in Ukraine in February.

This has led to Gazprom significantly curbing its gas supplies to Europe, yet it has continued to cash in thanks to soaring prices.

It has frequently faced criticism for its role in Europe’s mounting energy crisis. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Moscow is using Gazprom ‘to make this coming winter as harsh as possible’ for Europe.

Germany, heavily dependent on Russia for gas, has accused it of using energy as a ‘weapon’.

Gazprom’s results revealed its exports to countries outside the former Soviet Union were down 31 per cent year-on-year.

Yesterday also saw the firm cut off its gas supplies to Germany via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline due to maintenance works.

Government data recently revealed that Britain imported no fuel from Russia for the first time in June.