Shell Can’t Use Gazprom’s Ruble-Payment Method Due to Sanctions

Shell Plc may have difficulty paying for Russian gas supplies this month because the Kremlin wants payments transfered through U.K.-sanctioned Gazprombank JSC, according to two people familiar with discussions in Russia.

Gazprom PJSC, the single largest provider of natural gas to the European continent, now only accepts ruble payments for supplies of the fuel to so-called ‘unfriendly’ states, including the European Union and the U.K. Shell has at least two long-term contracts that would be affected by this rule, jointly equivalent to about 1.5% of Gazprom’s annual exports to key foreign clients.

To keep receiving Russian natural gas, all ...