EU Lawmakers Call for Halt To Russian LNG Fleet Repairs in Denmark’s Fayard Shipyard

More than 100 European Lawmakers are pressuring Denmark’s Fayard Shipyard to stop servicing Russian LNG Carriers which ship Arctic gas.

Fayard is the last European facility which is helping extend the lifespan of these icebreaking ships, the Arc7 LNG fleet, which are vital for Russia’s Yamal LNG export project.

The advocacy group Urgewald organised the appeal and said that this could undermine European efforts to curb Russian energy revenues after the EU’s LNG restrictions against Russia come into force in 2027.

“Every Arc7 tanker serviced in Denmark helps preserve one of the Kremlin’s most strategically important energy projects,” Ukrainian presidential sanctions adviser Vladyslav Vlasiuk said in a statement.

Danish Member of the European Parliament Villy Søvndal, one of the signatories, said European companies should not take advantage of a final loophole for short-term profit, stating that Denmark’s political support for Ukraine must also be reflected by its private sector.

The campaign has targeted Fayard because it is now the only remaining European Shipyard that can carry out maintenance of the Arc7 fleet of LNG Carriers which serve Novatek’s Yamal LNG project in Russia’s Arctic.

The specialised vessels are designed to break through thick Arctic ice while shipping LNG year-round, and require regular drydock overhauls after operating in some of the harshest maritime conditions.

Another Dutch-owned Damen Shiprepair Brest, which was earlier the only other European yard servicing the vessels, stopped accepting Russian LNG carriers after completing its final Arc7 maintenance project in 2024, leaving Fayard as the fleet’s last option.

Atleast six Arc7 carriers could undergo maintenance at Fayard during the summer of 2026 before new EU rules banning maritime services for Russian LNG vessels enter into force on Jan. 1, 2027.

As major overhauls are done every 3 years, experts believe that the work could provide Russia’s Arctic LNG fleet with a fresh maintenance cycle before sanctions eliminate access to European repair facilities.