Russia’s Arctic LNG 2 project sharply hiked processing in July as it prepared to start liquefied-gas exports, defying US restrictions.

The Novatek PJSC-led plant, sanctioned by the US in November, processed around 28.7 million cubic meters of gas last month, according to a person with knowledge of industry data. That’s 3.5 times more than June and the highest level in three months, comparisons with historic data show.

While the data don’t specify that the volumes were liquefied, similar information for Novatek’s Yamal LNG project would suggest that’s the case.

Novatek didn’t immediately respond to a request for a comment.

The hike in Arctic LNG 2’s processing operations came as the facility prepared for its first liquefied-gas exports, which happened in early August, according to ship-tracking data and satellite images viewed by Bloomberg. 

So far in August, three tankers — the Pioneer, Asya Energy, and Everest Energy — have docked at the facility to take LNG cargoes, the data showed. All of them are part of a suspected “dark fleet” of LNG vessels Moscow may be amassing amid western bans.

Russia’s LNG industry has become a target of US sanctions as Washington and its allies work to reduce the Kremlin’s future revenues from energy exports amid the war in Ukraine. Arctic LNG 2 had been key to Moscow’s plans to triple production of the super-chilled fuel by the end of decade. 

The US Treasury toughened its stance last week by imposing restrictions on the three LNG tankers that shipped cargoes from Arctic LNG 2, and four more vessels. Ocean Speedstar Solutions, the India-based company linked to the sanctioned tankers, is also on the US Treasury list. 

Gas production at the fields that feed the Arctic LNG 2 project jumped to nearly 48 million cubic meters in July, a two-month high, the person said, citing industry data. Some of the output was used for the plant’s own needs, the person said.

While the project raised July processing volumes, they remained well below the design capacity of its currently operational first train, set to produce as much as 6.6 million metric tons of LNG, equivalent to around 9.1 billion cubic meters, per year.