The European Union is edging closer to finally adopting its latest sanctions package, the 18th since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine over three years ago. But two items still remain to be negotiated. Firstly, the price cap on Russian oil. It’s still in the draft proposal seen by RFE/RL, …
Read More »China Wins Big as Sanctions Cripple Russia’s Steel Industry
Ongoing geopolitical conflicts, including one active war, combined with market instability, declining steel demand in certain global regions and a rise in protective tariffs on exporting nations, have all come together to force some steel-producing countries, including China, to reassess and refocus their steel industry supply chains. Faced with weak …
Read More »U.S. and Russia Vie for Influence in Energy-Rich Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan has attracted lots of diplomatic attention this week from both the United States and Russia. The flurry of activity suggests geopolitical jostling is intensifying over the Central Asian state, apparently catalyzed by the recent Iranian-Israeli conflict. Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov capped a hectic week with a June 26 …
Read More »Polish Energy Company Ends Russian Oil Imports
Poland’s second-largest publicly listed company, Orlen, officially ended its oil imports from Russia on Monday, following the expiration of its final contract with Russian oil firm Rosneft. According to Polish state-run TVP World, the company ended oil imports from Russia to its Litvinov refinery in the Czech Republic, cutting its …
Read More »Russia’s Sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 Ramps up Output to Record Levels
Russia’s sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project raised production to record levels during the last days of June as the facility appears to have resumed loading cargoes. Natural gas output at the Novatek PJSC-led facility averaged 14 million cubic meters a day on June 28 and June 29, according to a …
Read More »Russia Tries again to Expand LNG Exports Upended by Sanctions
Russia is taking another crack at expanding exports of liquefied natural gas after US sanctions stalled efforts last year. An LNG vessel has docked at the Arctic LNG 2 export facility for the first time since October, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg and satellite images. The facility was …
Read More »Russia to Boost Exports of China’s Favorite Russian Crude in July
Russia is set to raise the shipments of the ESPO Blend crude from its Far East port of Kozmino in July, after lower exports this month due to maintenance, trading sources told Reuters on Wednesday. ESPO loadings from Kozmino are expected at 4 million tons, or about 970,000 barrels per …
Read More »Russia’s Fuel Oil Exports to India and Turkey Jump as Prices Drop
Russia hiked its fuel oil and vacuum gasoil (VGO) exports to India and Turkey in May as buyers preferred to purchase more fuel oil amid falling prices, according to shipping and trade data reviewed by Reuters. Russia’s oil products have been banned in the EU and other Western countries since …
Read More »The Hidden Price of “Cheap” Russian Gas
For years, Russian gas was seen as the bedrock of Europe’s industrial competitiveness, reliable, abundant, and above all, cheap. But as Europe transitions away from Russian energy, the true cost of that dependency is finally coming into view. This article reconsiders the myth of cheap Russian gas, showing that beyond …
Read More »Russia’s Oil Profits Tumble as Prices Fall and Sanctions Hit
The combined net profits of Russia’s oil and gas companies nearly halved in the first quarter from a year earlier, while petroleum revenues for the budget have been falling with the decline in oil prices in recent months. The net profits of the Russian oil and gas firms slumped to …
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