Greek billionaire’s shipping empire stalls EU’s 21st Russian sanctions package over LNG transit ban

The European Union’s proposed 21st sanctions package against Russia has stalled due to objections from Greece over planned restrictions on liquefied natural gas (LNG) transport, diplomatic sources familiar with the matter told the Financial Times.

According to the report, Athens opposed a provision in the sanctions draft that would ban the transshipment of Russian LNG to third countries.

Sources indicated that the diplomatic intervention by Greece is aimed at protecting Dynagas, a shipping company owned by Greek shipowner George Prokopiou. During a meeting on Wednesday, the Greek Permanent Representative to the EU told counterparts that the proposed sanctions would ruin the company.

Data from the maritime database Equasis shows that Dynagas operates a fleet of 27 gas carriers. This fleet includes “Arc7” ice-class tankers, which are custom-built to operate safely in the freezing waters of the Arctic region where Russia’s Yamal LNG plant is located.

Prokopiou, a prominent businessman, owns the shipping companies Dynacom, Dynagas Holding, and Sea Traders. He also holds a 43% stake in the publicly traded Dynagas LNG Partners. According to Forbes, Prokopiou and his family have an estimated net worth of $4.7 billion.

European diplomats speaking to the Financial Times emphasized that other member states have sacrificed their own commercial interests for the sake of enforcing sanctions against Russia.

The new sanctions draft proposed by the EU also includes a provision to lower the price cap under which companies can purchase and transport Russian oil without facing the risk of secondary sanctions.

To buy time for negotiations, EU permanent representatives were forced to pass an emergency resolution extending the existing price cap of $44.1 per barrel for another week. The Financial Times noted that without this temporary extension, oil prices could have risen sharply due to ongoing tensions between the US and Iran.

Kaja Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, expressed regret over the failure to reach a consensus on the sanctions package.

“Of course, member states have different reasons for objecting. Our goal is to reach an agreement. If an agreement cannot be reached, we will start working on Plan B,” Kallas said.

In a previous statement on July 13, Kallas had acknowledged that anti-Russian sanctions were causing harm to the European economy.

According to a report by Politico, talks have been postponed to July 22 after member states failed to reach an agreement on the new sanctions package for three consecutive days. The publication identified Greece and Austria as the primary countries blocking the measures.

Vienna is reportedly conditioning its approval on a compensation clause regarding the Austria-based Raiffeisen Bank. Austria is demanding the inclusion of a mechanism in the sanctions package to compensate the bank for €2.44 billion in losses resulting from precautionary measures taken against its subsidiary in Russia.

Meanwhile, Greece raised concerns regarding previously agreed EU restrictions on the Russian LNG trade dating from October 2025. Sources speaking to Politico indicated that these objections from Athens remain unresolved.