Russia crude exports to India and other Asian nations increasing

A report by the Research on Energy and Clean Air, an independent think tank based in Helsinki, Finland released said Russia earned 93 billion euros ($97.4 billion) in revenue from fossil fuel exports in the first 100 days of the country’s invasion of Ukraine, despite a fall in export volumes in May.

India and other Asian nations are becoming an increasingly vital source of oil revenues for Moscow despite strong pressure from the US.

India has guzzled nearly 60 million barrels of Russian oil in 2022 so far, compared with 12 million barrels in all of 2021, according to commodity data firm Kpler. Shipments to other Asian countries, like China, have also increased in recent months but to a lesser extent.

In late May, Sri Lanka bought a 90,000-metric-ton (99,000-ton) shipment of Russian crude to restart its only refinery.

Russia is moving to diversify its exports. Russian Ambassador Marat Pavlov met Philippine President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on and offered Moscow’s help to provide oil and gas.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February, global oil prices have soared, giving refiners in India and other countries an added incentive to tap oil Moscow is offering them at steep discounts of $30 to $35, compared with Brent crude and other international oil now trading at about $120 per barrel.