The value of Russia’s seaborne oil exports in the week to 27 September reached $2.75bn, the highest level since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At the same time, Russia has lost the diesel market, Bloomberg writes.
Over the past week, 37 tankers loaded 27.9 million barrels of Russian oil. A week earlier, 32 vessels shipped 24.99 million barrels. Weekly revenue rose by about $180m despite a fall in the price of Russia’s Urals crude, as higher export volumes offset the drop in value.
On average, in the four weeks to 27 September Russia exported 3.71 million barrels of oil a day. This is the highest level since the start of August. Average weekly revenue over this period increased by $290m to $2.39bn.
At the same time, Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries have led to a reduction in domestic processing. Moscow is directing the surplus of unrefined oil to exports.
Because of a fuel shortage, Russia has almost stopped exporting diesel. Before the intensification of attacks on refineries, the country shipped about 1 million barrels of diesel fuel a day. The ban on diesel exports has been extended until the end of October.
Against this backdrop, Russia has raised its 2026 forecast for crude oil exports by about 150,000 barrels a day. At the same time, the forecast for exports of petroleum products has been cut by about 500,000 barrels a day.
According to Bloomberg estimates, the additional income from crude oil sales will only partially offset losses from reduced fuel exports.
The biggest buyers of Russian oil remain China and India. Over the past week, shipments to Asian customers, together with cargoes with no specified final destination, rose to 3.61 million barrels a day from 3.4 million a week earlier.
Russian oil exports to the Mediterranean fell to about 100,000 barrels a day, the lowest level since the start of the full-scale war.
- Oil prices rose after Saudi Arabia halted operations on a major oil pipeline due to Houthi attacks. This jolted the market and disrupted a route that had played an important role in bypassing the Strait of Hormuz during the war between the US and Iran.