The Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday Russia’s oil revenues had fallen sharply, amid record Russian oil exports.
The IEA publishes monthly reports on the state of the world oil market. According to IEA experts, in March 2023 the total shipment of Russian oil increased to 8.1 million barrels per day and exports to 3.1 million barrels per day. This is the highest level since March 2020. The IEA notes that the growth of Russian oil exports is observed despite Western sanctions imposed on its oil sector.
Russia’s profit on the sale of oil in March 2023 increased by $1 billion from February 2023 and reached $12.7 billion. But it is still 43% less than in March 2022, before the imposition of the sanctions.
The IEA report also notes that Russian oil deliveries to EU countries nearly doubled between February and March, to 300,000 bpd. At the same time, this figure is still 1.5 million barrels per day lower than the pre-war level.
Crude oil exports from Russia increased by 100,000 bpd to 5 million bpd, with India replacing China as the main destination for Russian oil supplies in Asia in March.
Moreover, Russia’s diesel exports to Turkey have reached their highest level since 2018. Turkey has refused to join Western sanctions against Moscow.
In December 2022, the EU introduced an upper limit on the price of Russian oil at $60 per barrel. The restrictions applied to crude oil, petroleum oils and petroleum products derived from bituminous rocks.
In February 2023, the EU imposed a near total ban on Russian petroleum products and agreed with the G7 on a price cap of $100 per barrel for expensive fuels, including diesel, and $45 for poor quality petroleum products such as fuel oil.
According to Radio Liberty, citing the Russian Ministry of Finance, Russia’s oil and gas revenues in January and February this year fell by almost half compared to February 2022. The reason for this drop in the Russian Ministry of Finance was the fall in oil prices from the Urals and a sharp reduction in natural gas exports. In general, Russian budget revenues at the beginning of this year are 25% lower than last year.
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