Russia will be able to find new sales markets for about half of its crude oil after the European Union finally abandons it in December.
Bloomberg writes about this with reference to data from the analytical company Kpler.
According to Kpler, Indonesia, Pakistan, Brazil, South Africa, Sri Lanka and some countries in the Middle East can together buy up to one million barrels of crude oil from Russia next winter. Middle Eastern countries, which will be able to buy up to 500,000 barrels per day of Russian crude oil this winter, could divert the fuel to exports.
Russiaʼs oil industry, which accounts for about 10% of global production, is a key source of income for the Kremlin. Currently, EU countries still buy oil from the Russian Federation, but in December, most of the imports of Urals crude oil will be banned, and in February, the ban will extend to Russian petroleum products.
According to estimates by the International Energy Agency, this could reduce oil production in Russia by almost two million barrels per day compared to the level before February 24 if the Russian Federation is unable to distribute its oil flows.
Bloomberg notes that Russian companies are already diverting their cargoes to Asia, mainly to India and China, as some European buyers are voluntarily giving up their oil.
- Against the backdrop of Russiaʼs war against Ukraine, the USA and the EU gave up Russian fuel, but in stages. The EU allocated half a year to abandon oil and up to eight months to abandon petroleum products. Oil deliveries via pipelines have not been sanctioned.