MOSCOW, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Russian exports of liquefied
natural gas (LNG) to Europe fell 1.9% to 15.8 million metric
tons in 2023, and LNG exports to Asia fell 11% to 14.9 million
tons, LSEG data showed on Tuesday.
    Europe increased purchases of LNG from global producers in
2023 while sharply cutting its imports of Russian pipeline gas
in response to the conflict in Ukraine.
    Overall LNG exports from Russia were down 6% last year to 31
million tons due to planned repairs at plants during the summer.
But in December 2023, Russian LNG exports reached a record level
of 3.2 million tons, of which 1.9 million tons were from Yamal
LNG.
    Russia's largest LNG producer, Novatek provided
the bulk of the exports, shipping 18.7 million tons from the
Yamal LNG project in the Arctic and 800,000 tons from
Kriogaz-Vysotsk on the Baltic Sea, according to preliminary LSEG
data.
    The Gazprom-led Sakhalin-2 project in the Pacific part of
Russia reduced its LNG exports by 10% to 10.1 million tons in
2023.
    Launched in September 2022, the medium-tonnage Gazprom LNG
Portovaya project exported 1.4 million tons LNG in 2023, mainly
to Turkey and Greece, although three shipments went to China,
one of them via the Northern Sea Route through the Arctic.
    Gazprom and Novatek did not respond to requests for comment.
    
    LNG exports from Novatek and Gazprom projects in 2023 and
2022 by shipping region, in millions of tons:

 mln tons                 2023        2022
 Yamal LNG                18.7        20.8
 -Europe                  13.9        15.1
 -Asia                    4.6         5.2
 Sakhalin-2 (Asia)        10.1        11.2
 Kriogaz-Vysotsk          0.8         0.7
 -Europe                  0.8         0.7
 LNG Portovaya            1.4         0.4
 -Europe                  1.1         0.3
 -Asia                    0.2         0.0
 Total Asia               14.9        16.7
 Total Europe             15.8        16.1
 Total LNG exports        31.0        33.0
 
 (Reporting by Oksana Kobzeva)