US media: Russia secretly controls Alaska gas terminal project

Russian company Novatek is financing a gas terminal construction project in the US state of Alaska. The project is being carried out by the US company Polar Train LNG, but the Russian firm in practice determines its strategy. This is reported by the British newspaper the Financial Times and the American newspaper The New York Times.

The outlets cite Joel Riddle, the former chief executive of Polar Train LNG. According to the information attributed to him, the project's funding comes from the Russian company, and it also shapes the direction of the US firm's operations.

Because the project is formally run by a US company, the reports point to Russian capital and influence being tied to energy infrastructure on US territory. The source material gives no further details on the project's scale, cost or timeline, and does not say whether the companies have commented on the reports.