Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih to buy Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) in order to spare Saudi Arabia’s oil, the Interfax news agency reported him as saying on Friday.

“Buy our gas and you’ll save oil,” Putin told Falih after having given the order to start loading the first gas tanker with liquefied natural gas at the Novatek-led Yamal LNG project in the Arctic.

“That’s why I’m here,” Falih replied.

Putin had said that Russia was capable of occupying a worthy niche in the global market for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and should do just that.

Putin also said that LNG export projects must not lead to a reduction in the volume of gas Russia exports via pipelines.

He was speaking after having given the order to start loading the first gas tanker with LNG at the Novatek-led Yamal LNG project in the Arctic, which will further expand the Kremlin’s global energy reach.