China’s imports of Russian liquefied natural gas surged to a record high in November, making Russia the country’s second-largest LNG supplier after Qatar, Bloomberg reported on Dec. 22, citing customs data.

Russian LNG deliveries to China more than doubled year-on-year to 1.6 million metric tons last month, allowing Moscow to overtake Australia in Chinese supplies, according to the data.

The increase comes despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to curb Russia’s energy revenues, as Chinese buyers sought cheaper fuel and ignored the risk of Western sanctions.

The surge highlights Russia’s growing reliance on Asian energy markets following its all-out war.

Moscow has redirected gas exports toward Asia to compensate for shrinking sales to Europe, where governments have worked to reduce dependence on Russian energy and are moving toward a full ban on imports of Russian LNG.

European countries had been Russia’s largest gas customers for decades before the invasion.

Since then, China has emerged as one of the key buyers of Russian oil and gas, capitalizing on steep discounts offered by Moscow as it searches for alternative markets amid sanctions pressure.

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