The price of Russian Ural oil fell to $52 (CZK 1,220) a barrel on Thursday, according to data from trading company Argus Media. For comparison, a barrel of Brent North Sea oil was sold on the same day for $85 (1990 CZK).
Russian oil has long been discounted against Brent, which is mainly used by China and India, which have started buying the Urals in much larger volumes than they did before the war in Ukraine. However, these countries temporarily halted import purchases in December, waiting to see what the maximum price agreed by the European Union, G7 countries and Australia will look like.
The ceiling will ensure that traders buying Russian oil above its limit will lose access to European and especially Greek tankers or industrial risk insurance (oil spills, etc.).
Russian diesel flows. Europe is buying what it can before the ban takes effect
Economic
However, the ceiling height itself is a long-discussed and still unresolved point. EU representatives speak of a level between 65 and 70 dollars. For example, Poland considers the price of $65 insufficient, while Greece, which is the world’s largest tanker owner, does not want to go below $70.
Either way, if the cap were indeed implemented somewhere between the threshold discussed, it would still mean that Russian traders would be raising more money for oil than they do now.
However, the victory would be temporary. As Bloomberg has pointed out, the price of oil can start to rise again at any moment, and if the ceiling is set, then during the period of growth in the price of the raw material, Russia may lose some of the income that it would not have lost without the price. introduction of the ceiling.
Valid from 5 December
The G7 countries and Australia agreed to limit Russian oil imported by sea as early as early September, the European Union a month later. The measure will go into effect on December 5. The ban on the import of Russian oil into the EU will also come into effect on the same day, and the ban on the import of Russian petroleum products will also be added on February 5.
However, several countries have negotiated exemptions from the ban. For example, the transport of crude oil through the Družba pipeline supplying Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary will be temporarily excluded from the embargo. Unlike other countries, Czechia will also be able to import Russian petroleum products from refineries in other EU countries until December next year.
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Economic
