Russia has maintained a steady pace of oil shipments from its sea ports at the start of November despite fresh U.S. sanctions imposed on the country’s largest oil companies, traders said and LSEG data shows.
The United States last week introduced sanctions against Russia’s two biggest oil producers, Lukoil and Rosneft. These are the first direct sanctions on Russia imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump since the start of his second term.
Exports are proceeding according to schedule in various directions, with tankers from the so-called shadow fleet and vessels flying Russian flags continuing to participate in shipments, traders said.
Many vessels loading at Russia’s western ports – Primorsk, Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk – list Port Said or the Suez Canal as their destination, but later continue on to Asian ports, mainly India and China, traders noted.
Supplies of Urals crude to India are continuing for now, with cargoes sold before the latest Western sanctions still arriving.
Traders expect stable shipments to continue at least until November 21, the deadline set by Washington for transactions with sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil.
Volumes are expected to start declining from late November, with December shipments set to fall further, sources close to the matter said.
Traders expect that unsold oil may eventually be shipped to China, with Russian oil being sold in Asia at the deepest discounts in the past year, the sources said.
Average estimates put November transshipment of Urals, Siberian Light and KEBCO grades in Primorsk, Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk at about 2.3 million barrels per day (bpd), compared with around 2.4 million bpd in October, including volumes rolling over from September.
(Reporting by Reuters Editing by David Goodman)