North Asia

Sources in shipping and trade said that freight rates for tanker shipments from Russia's western port to India dropped in mid-May because of seasonal factors, a large supply?of shadow flotte vessels and global shifts in shipping. The blockade of Strait of Hormuz is still in place. Meanwhile, the shift of tankers to the Atlantic has a negative impact on the rates in Europe as ships who previously worked in the Gulf relocate. Lower freight rates support higher netbacks of Russian?oil imports. Estimates suggest that the latest reduction in freight rates could boost?Urals price by $3 to $7 per barrel on...

LSEG data and industry sources showed that a Russian diesel cargo had been floating off the coast of Chile for almost two months. This is despite fuel shortages in parts of South America. The latest shipping disruption is the delay in?dispharging?. According to market sources, this is due to a rise in fuel prices that has occurred since mid-February in response the Iran War. This has led some traders in the spot market sector to look for higher margin deals. Shipping data shows that the tanker MT Sauri loaded around 30,000 metric tonnes of?diesel in Russia's Baltic Port of Vysotsk,...

Data from industry sources and calculations showed that Russia's seaborne product exports fell by 9.8% from one month to the next and 17% compared to a year earlier, reaching 7.77 million metric tonnes, according to a report released on Friday. This was as Ukrainian drones attacked ports and refineries. Kyiv intensified its attacks to disrupt Moscow's ability of financing the Ukraine War, forcing 700,000 barrels a day of Russian crude processing capacity off-line between January and April. The April export of oil products dropped to its lowest level since November 20,25 when two major Black Sea ports, Tuapse & Novorossiysk,...

Finland said on Friday that suspected drone activity in the skies above the capital region of the country no longer posed any threat, and the situation had returned to normal. Yle, the public broadcaster, reported that earlier in response to this situation, the country's defense forces scrambled a?fighter plane and other emergency services. The danger is over. "People can?go?to work?and?school safely," Interior minister Mari Rantanen wrote in a social media post on the website X. A statement posted on the airport's website said that traffic at Helsinki Airport had also resumed after a suspension of three hours. Authorities are taking...

Three traders reported that the premiums for Russia's Urals oil have fallen in India as refiners reduced purchases amid weak margins. Russian Urals crude for delivery to Indian ports in?June trades at a premium between $2-4 per barrel compared to Brent. This is down from $6-7 per barrel for cargoes delivered in May, traders reported. Since early March, the price of Urals in Indian ports has been higher than that of Brent. This is because the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran caused oil to be diverted through the Strait 'of Hormuz. The traders say that Urals prices will not...

LSEG and market sources reported that Russia's seaborne gasoil and diesel exports increased by 8% in April from March. This is only a slight decrease from the 3.3 million metric tonnes?exported a year earlier. Exports rose despite repeated Ukrainian attacks on ports and refineries, weather disruptions and a surge in global demand. Primorsk, a Baltic port, was attacked in late March and earlyApril. The Black Sea port of Tuapse was also attacked, and a nearby Tuapse Refinery owned by Rosneft had to stop operations after a Ukrainian drone attack on April 16. Sources said that the ultra-low-sulphur Diesel shipments from...

Saudi Arabian state oil producer Saudi Aramco has held its official selling prices for liquefied petroleum gas in May, while Algerian Sonatrach cut it by up to 18%, due to a higher global supply. Saudi Aramco’s?OSPs for May were at $750 per metric ton of propane Butane is priced at $800 a ton . Propane and butane, two types of LPG, have?different boiling point. LPG is used primarily as fuel for vehicles, for heating and for other petrochemicals. Sonatrach has reduced its?May OP for propane from $700 to $150 per ton And?for Butane by $20 per ton?to $880 . The...

U.S. Treasury?Secretary Scott Bessent urged China on Monday to step?up diplomatic efforts to convince Iran to open up the Strait?of Hormuz for international shipping. He added?that this subject will?be?discussed?when Donald Trump meets Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing next week. Bessent stated during a Fox News Channel live interview that "China should step up and do some diplomacy to get the Iranians open the Strait." Bessent stated that China bought 90% of Iran's electricity, "so?they?are financing the largest state-sponsor of terrorism." He stated that he was encouraging China to "join us" in the international operation to open up the strait....

Kyiv reported on Monday that Russia had stepped up its attack against Ukrainian port infrastructure this year. It used?more 800 drones to carry out its attacks, which is more than ten times what it did in the same time period last year. Keep the seaports open in southern Odesa, as they are vital to Ukraine's wartime economy and hard currency revenue. Oleksii Kulba, Ukraine's Minister of Infrastructure, said that despite the attacks, Ukraine's ports have processed more than 30 millions metric tons since the beginning of the year. In recent months, almost daily Russian attacks have been reported on Ukraine's...

Brandenburg said that up to 80% of crude supplies for 'Germany's PCK Schwedt refining plant are guaranteed in May. Germany is seeking alternatives to replace lost supplies following Russia's announcement to stop deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline on May 1. Dietmar W. Woidke, the state premier, said on Wednesday that "PCK's capability utilisation is stable. Crude oil supplies are secured up to 80% by May.?And jobs are protected." Woidke said that the situation allowed him to be optimistic about the future. He added that German officials worked with partners to find a solution for the refinery which supplies parts of...

Israel could face a legal and diplomatic response from Kyiv, according to a Ukrainian diplomatic source. If it allows a vessel bringing?grain?from the Russian-occupied Ukraine?to dock at?the port?of Haifa? The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that earlier the Panormitis vessel, which was carrying grain from occupied Ukrainian territories that Kyiv considers stolen, was awaiting permission to berth in Haifa. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: "If the ship and its cargo are not rejected, we reserve the right to use a full suite of diplomatic -and international legal-responses." Israel's Foreign Ministry did not respond immediately to a comment...

Shipping data revealed that a superyacht associated with Russian billionaire Alexey Mordashov, who is sanctioned, sailed the Strait of?Hormuz Saturday. It was one of?very, very few vessels? to pass through the blocked shipping lane in the?heart of U.S.Iran conflict. Nord, a 142-meter (465 foot) yacht valued at over $500 million, left a Dubai Marina on Friday around 1400 GMT, crossed the Strait on Saturday and arrived in Muscat on Sunday morning. The multi-deck vessel's route is unclear. Iran has restricted the flow of traffic through the Strait since?February. The strait is responsible for around a fifth of the world’s oil...

China and 'Russia' condemned U.S. President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense shield plans and Washington's 'irresponsible' nuclear policy during a joint meeting on 'Wednesday', a week following President Xi 'Jinping's hosting of Trump in Beijing. In a joint statement, Xi and Russian 'President Vladimir Putin' said that Trump’s plans for a missile interceptor system based on the ground and in space posed a serious threat to strategic stability around the world. The report also criticised the United States for the expiration of the last remaining nuclear treaty that restricted the size of U.S.-Russian arsenals. This expired in February after...

China has increased its purchases of Russian gas and oil since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine 2022. Moscow and Beijing declared a partnership with "no limitations" just days before war broke out. Energy relations between Russia and China are expected to be a major topic at the meeting of Vladimir Putin with Xi Jinping in Beijing, on Wednesday. Here are some facts about energy ties between the two countries. Gazprom, the Russian energy giant, supplies natural gas to China through a pipeline of 3,000 km (1,865 miles) called Power of Siberia, under a $400 billion, 30-year deal signed...

The Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit China this week, and he will 'hold discussions with President Xi Jinping. A Kremlin aide stated on Monday that a detailed discussion of the proposed Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline would be held. China, 'the world's largest oil and gas consumer, is a major buyer of Russian products. Here are some facts regarding the proposed pipeline: What is the POWER OF SIBERIA II? Power of Siberia 2 is a planned 2,600 km (1,616 miles) system that will transport 50 billion cubic meters (bcm), or 50 billion cubic feet per year...

In recent months, Ukraine has intensified its attacks on Russian energy installations as the peace talks have not produced any progress. Here is a brief summary of some of the recent attacks that followed Russian strikes against Ukrainian energy facilities and their impact. MOSCOW Sergei Sobyanin, the mayor of Moscow, said on Sunday that twelve people had been injured, mainly near the entrance to Moscow’s oil refinery. Three houses also suffered damage. He said that the "technology" at the refinery had not been damaged. Moscow's refinery is located in the Kapotnya district of the capital, in its southeastern part. It...

Sources said that Greek investigators believed a military sea 'drone found on a Greek island last week had gone off course because of a 'technical failure. It may not have traveled far. The explosive-laden drone, which Greece claims is "Ukrainian" but Kyiv denies it officially, was found by fishermen off the coast of Lefkada in May. This sparked diplomatic tensions between Athens & Kyiv. Greek intelligence and military unit have analysed the drone. They dismantled it and used reverse engineering to determine their characteristics. Investigators are also examining the metadata of this drone to determine its mission, and whether or...

Prime Minister Robert Fico announced on Friday that Slovakia is considering the possibility of becoming a direct purchaser of 'Russian oil.' Currently, purchases are handled by MOL in Hungary, which owns Slovnaft Slovnaft refinery. Fico suggested that the state pipeline operator Transpetrol could assume a role as buyer. Fico said in a televised press conference that he thought it was a good idea for the Slovak Republic to become a contracting partner with the Russian Federation. Both Slovakia and Hungary are exempt from the European Union's restrictions on Russian oil imports. The bloc has decided to completely phase out Russian...

Three industry sources say that the Caspian Pipeline Consortium plans to export around 1.45 million barrels per day of CPC Blend crude oil in June, down from 1.8 million barrels per day expected in May, due to planned maintenance at Kazakhstan's giant Kashagan oilfield. Calculations show that June loadings will be 17% lower daily than May. This is a significant drop from the multi-month peak of May. CPC does NOT comment on operational shipment statistics. Sources claim that maintenance on the Kashagan oil field, with a capacity of 0.4 million barrels per day, will begin in early June. It may...

The lifting of?some customs sanctions on Armenia by the Turkish government on Wednesday is a sign that the strained ties between the two nations are finally being normalised. The Turkish government closed its border with Azerbaijan and stopped direct trade in 1993 to support its close ally Azerbaijan during the Nagorno Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Since then, the neighbours have not had formal diplomatic relations due to a deep-seated historical 'hostility' stemming from World War One and the Ottomans' mass killing of Armenians. This was considered genocide in Armenia and many other countries. In a statement released on...

The International Energy Agency reported that Russia's crude production fell by 460,000 barrels a day in April compared to the same month last year. This is despite Ukraine increasing drone attacks against energy targets. Since March, Ukraine has launched waves of drone strikes?on Russia’s largest Western oil ports. These attacks have caused massive?fires and also attacked refineries to drain the war economy in Russia. The IEA said that?Russian oil product -exports decreased in April by 340,000 bpd compared to March, reaching 2.2 million bpd. This is the lowest level recorded in the Paris-based organization's archives. The report said that Russia’s...

At a meeting at the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin told Robert Fico, Slovakia's Prime Minister on Saturday that Russia would do all it could to meet Slovakia’s energy needs. Slovakia is one of the few European countries that still buys?Russian oil and gas. The Druzhba Pipeline, built by the Soviets, is used to transport Russian oil into Slovakia. TurkStream is used to deliver natural gas from Russia. Fico arrived at Moscow for the celebrations to mark 'the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany during World War Two. In comments broadcast by?national television, Putin said that he would do "everything" to meet...

Sources from the Greek police and coast guard said that they are investigating a 'drone boat' found by fishermen in a cave of the ionian island?Lefkada. The exact route taken by the unmanned surface vessel (USV) made in Ukraine to reach Greek waters was unclear. The unmanned surface vehicle (USV) was found by fishermen late on Thursday. Officials, speaking under condition of anonymity, said preliminary findings indicated that the MAGURA V3 type sea?drone had three detonators. The Greek army was unable to confirm that the ship was?loaded with explosives', according to a source. Divers were on the scene as bomb...

?Russia's vast Kirishinefteorgsintez (Kirishi) oil ?refinery halted processing on Tuesday following Ukrainian ?drone attacks ?which damaged ?the ?plant's units and caused a fire, two industry sources said. Surgutneftegaz which controls the refinery did not respond immediately to a comment request. Sources who requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation said that three of four crude distillation unit (CDU) at the refinery had been damaged by the drone attack. Sources said that it is difficult to estimate the time needed for the repairs of damaged units. They added that secondary units also suffered damage. Alexander Drozdenko, the region...