WSJ: Total Looks to China to Finance Russian Gas Project Amid Sanctions

Total SA said it was seeking nondollar financing for a gas project in Russia, becoming the second energy company in several days to indicate that Western sanctions on the Kremlin are affecting expansion plans.

Exxon Mobil Corp. on Friday said it would stop drilling in the Russian Arctic. Major oil companies have played down the impact of sanctions on assets that are already producing oil and gas in Russia. But the comments from France's Total and U.S.-based Exxon show how projects that are key to growth are affected.

Exxon said it had obtained permission from the U.S. government to go beyond the Sept. 26 deadline to safely wind down drilling of the company's first well in the Kara Sea. The company declined to say how long the process would take. Exxon in 2011 formed an exploration joint venture with state-owned OAO Rosneft that the companies estimate will cost at least $3.2 billion.
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