In February, sea exports of Russian oil decreased by 9% compared to January, but the most noticeable was a sharp reduction in supplies through “shadow” tankers — by 21%. About this reported in the report of the analytical agency CREA.
In February, 356 ships transported Russian oil and oil products, of which 167 belonged to the so-called “shadow fleet”. Oil exports by these tankers decreased by 21% compared to January. At the same time, volumes of oil transported by vessels owned or insured by G7+ countries increased by 15% over the same period.
“This change suggests that the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions imposed in January may have had a real impact on Russian oil flows”, the message says.
The report also notes that lowering the price ceiling to $30 per barrel could reduce Russia’s oil export revenues by 41% (€136 billion) from the time the sanctions were imposed in December 2022 until the end of February 2025. Only in February, such a price limit would reduce Russia’s profits by 40% (4.26 billion euros).
In general, the situation “looks positive”, the agency emphasizes. In February, the “shadow” fleet accounted for 56% of the total volume of crude oil deliveries, while in January this figure was 65%. The share of crude oil exports through “shadow” tankers decreased from 85% to 75%, and the transportation of petroleum products – from 40% to 32%.
