Saudi Arabia buys Russian diesel and sends its own to Europe

Saudi Arabia is buying millions of barrels of Russian diesel as it sells its supplies to European countries despite European bans on Russian fuel, according to a Bloomberg report. The report, released on Thursday, said Riyadh imported an average of 174,000 barrels a day of Russian diesel in April and has already surpassed that figure this month.

Citing data compiled by analyst firm Kpler, the report said the kingdom has replaced Russia as Europe's main supplier since February, when Europe imposed a ban on Russian fuel and other refined petroleum products as a penalty for war in Ukraine. In December, the European Union, G7 countries and Australia also set a $60-a-barrel cap on Russian crude to curb Moscow's fossil-fuel gains. However, Bloomberg said about 35% of Saudi Arabia's overall diesel exports were shipped to EU countries and England in April, while barrels of Russian fuel arrived at the Saudi ports of Ras Tanura and Jizan at the same time.

Iman Nasseri, managing director for West Asia at consultancy firm FGE, said Riyadh's diesel-like fuel imports are expected to rise from an average of 31,500 bpd in 2022 to around 150,000 bpd during the rest of the year. of 2023.