EU boycott of Russia causes oil prices to drop

Zurich In the Baltic Sea port of Primorsk it is evident that there is a means of pressure against Vladimir Putin – that the new sanctions of the G7 industrialized countries against the rulers in Russia and his war in Ukraine are working. The Urals oil, which is mainly produced in the west of the country, is shipped from Primorsk, traditionally to Europe. But since the EU introduced an import ban on oil from Russia, export prices in Primorsk have been in free fall.

According to the industry service Argus Media, the Urals price was last quoted at around 45 dollars per barrel (around 159 liters). This corresponds to a discount of more than 40 percent on the European reference price for Brent oil. In the extreme east of Russia, however, the situation is different: Crude oil from Siberia, which is pumped via the Espo pipeline to the Pacific coast near Vladivostok, currently costs around 72 dollars per barrel, according to Argus – and is therefore just barely below the world market price.