Record amount of Russian oil in tankers at sea

There is currently a record amount of Russian oil in tankers at sea. This was reported by market researcher Kpler. Last week, the agency said there were 74 million to 79 million barrels of Russian oil that are now at sea.

That is much more than the amount of oil at sea shortly before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February. Then it was about 27 million barrels (of 159 liters), according to Kpler.

Asia replaced Europe as the largest buyer of Russian oil for the first time last month, and that gap is likely to widen further. Because of the war in Ukraine, European countries and companies are buying much less oil from Russia. The United States has imposed an import ban and the British will also ban the import of Russian oil.

Moscow should therefore look to countries like China and India for the sale of crude oil. Those countries are now buying up millions of barrels to take advantage of the high discounts offered by Russia.