US oil and gas multinational corporations have found themselves facing renewed questions regarding their trade relations with Russia, a report by The Guardian shows. 

Customs records have recently revealed that more than $7.1 million worth of equipment, manufactured by the prominent company Halliburton, has been exported to Russia, despite the company announcing the end of its Russian operations.

Last September, Halliburton, a global leader in providing products and services for oil and gas exploration, sold its Russian office to local management, complying with the mounting pressure on US companies to cease trade with Russia following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.

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However, Russian customs records obtained by The Guardian show that Halliburton subsidiaries continued to export equipment worth $5,729,600 to their former Russian operation in the six weeks following the sale.

This equipment, primarily sourced from the US and Singapore, had origins in several countries, including the UK, Belgium, and France.

Imports resumed in December 2022

While the bulk of exports from Halliburton subsidiaries ceased on October 6 last year, the last recorded shipment to Russia, identified as Halliburton MFG in the records, consisted of a sealing element valued at $2,939.40, originating from Malaysia and destined for a firm known as Sakhalin Energy.

Sakhalin Energy is a consortium involved in the development of the Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project in eastern Russia, with investors including Gazprom. 

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After a brief hiatus, imports of Halliburton equipment to Russia resumed in December 2022, facilitated by two companies unrelated to the US multinational. These products were imported from Turkey, bringing the total value of Halliburton equipment exported to Russia since the company closed its Russian operations to at least $7,163,317.

Notably, a staggering 98% of these exports to Russia have been supplied to Halliburton's newly independent former operation, now known as BurService. This entity has counted among its clients some of Russia's largest energy companies, including Gazprom, Rosneft, TNK-BP, and Lukoil.

According to available customs records, exports of Halliburton equipment to Russia persisted until at least the end of June this year, with more recent data yet to be made available.

This revelation has sparked frustration in Ukraine, where many are exasperated by the sluggishness of major Western industrial players in disentangling themselves from the Russian economy.

These findings underscore the challenges that multinational companies have faced in unwinding their trading relationships and controlling the distribution of their products via third parties. Some of the world's largest US oil and gas field service companies are already under scrutiny for their conduct.

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Pushing for 'solidarity'

Earlier this month, Bob Menendez, the head of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, penned letters to Halliburton and its competitors, Schlumberger (SLB) and Baker Hughes, after reports suggested that these companies continued to engage in varying degrees of trade with Russia following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine last year.

In his letters to the chief executives of these three companies, Menendez expressed extreme concern, citing an Associated Press report that suggested ongoing sales to Russia in 2022. He accused the companies' management of prioritizing profit over standing in solidarity with Ukraine.

Responding to these revelations, a spokesperson for Halliburton maintained the company's adherence to sanctions and stated, "Halliburton no longer conducts operations in Russia."

Halliburton, formerly led by former US Vice President Dick Cheney, reported a gross profit of $4.052 billion for the 12 months ending June 30, 2023, marking a substantial 63.19% increase year-on-year, despite writing off $300 million related to the sale of its Russian operation.

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