Source: Berlin wants to protect Rosneft Germany's arm from US sanctions
A person with direct knowledge about the discussions in the German government said that Germany was seeking exemptions from U.S. Sanctions on the German operations of Rosneft, the Russian oil company. This came after the banks warned they could be prevented from dealing with local energy suppliers due to the sanctions. Rosneft’s German business is owned by Russia but controlled by German authorities. It is Europe's largest economy's key oil supplier, routing the oil and refining it to fuel pumps and airports. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine in full force, the German branch of Rosneft was placed under government trusteeship.
Source: Indian refiners are reviewing Russian oil contracts following US sanctions
A source with first-hand knowledge of the situation said that Indian state refiners were reviewing their Russian oil trading documents to make sure no supplies would come directly from Rosneft or Lukoil following the U.S. sanctions against the companies. Donald Trump, the U.S. president in his second term imposed sanctions against Russia related to the Ukraine for the first in his tenure. He targeted oil companies Lukoil & Rosneft in an effort to express his growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the war in Ukraine. According to a Wednesday press release, the U.S.
US sanctions Russian oil companies Rosneft, Lukoil
As his frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin grows over the war, U.S. president Donald Trump imposed sanctions against Russia on Wednesday for the first times in his second term. He targeted oil companies Lukoil & Rosneft. The U.S. Treasury Department announced that it was ready to take additional action, as it called upon Moscow to immediately agree to a ceasefire during Russia's conflict in Ukraine which began in February 2020. Trump has made a significant policy shift by imposing sanctions against Russia. He had previously not sanctioned Russia for the war, but instead used trade measures.
Fico, the PM of Slovakia, says that Slovakia is likely to support a new EU sanctions package against Russia
Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of Slovakia, said that the country, which had been a skeptic about the 19th package of sanctions against Russia from the European Union, will now support the measures, provided its demands are met at the summit this week between the leaders of the EU. On Thursday, EU leaders will meet to discuss the war in Ukraine as well as European defense. The EU has condemned Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, and demanded that it make proposals on how to reduce the negative impact of climate targets on automakers and the high prices of electricity in the Union.
Palm oil ends the week lower due to weak crude oil.
Malaysian palm futures closed lower on Friday after a two-week rally. Weaker crude oil prices pushed the market. At the close, the benchmark palm oil contract on Bursa Derivatives Exchange for January delivery fell 6 ringgit or 0.13% to 4,514 Ringgit ($1,068.66). The contract dropped 0.68% in the past week. David Ng said that the market fell as low crude oil prices weighed on market sentiment. He is a proprietary trader with Kuala Lumpur based trading firm Iceberg X Sdn. Bhd. Palm oil is less appealing as a biodiesel feedstock due to the weaker crude oil futures.
Palm oil follows weak crude oil down, and is set to fall weekly
Malaysian palm futures fell on Friday as crude oil prices dropped, causing the market to fall. By midday, the benchmark palm oil contract on Bursa Malaysia's Derivatives exchange for January delivery had fallen 8 ringgit or 0.18% to 4,512 Ringgit ($1,068.43). David Ng said that the market fell as low crude oil prices weighed on the market sentiment. He is a proprietary trader with Kuala Lumpur based trading firm Iceberg X Sdn. Bhd. Palm oil is less appealing as a biodiesel feedstock due to the weaker crude oil futures. Oil prices fell in early trading, heading towards a weekly loss. There is uncertainty about global energy supply after U.S.
Zelenskiy believes that peace in the Middle East can lead to peace in Russia
On Thursday, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, said that the momentum of the Middle East Peace Process would help to end the more than three-and-a-half-year-old conflict between his country and Russia. Zelenskiy posted on Telegram that "we have a meeting with President Trump planned tomorrow. Zelenskiy didn't refer to Trump's promise, during a phone conversation with Vladimir Putin on Thursday, that he would hold new discussions. He said that it was obvious that "after hearing about Tomahawks", Moscow is eager to resume dialogue, a reference Trump's suggestion to Kyiv that he could provide those missiles.
US, UK Ramp Up Pressure on India to Stop Russian Oil Imports
Western powers have ramped up pressure on Russia's oil sales amid its war with Ukraine as U.S. President Donald Trump said India would stop buying and Britain imposed sanctions on top Russian oil firms.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is schedule to meet Trump in Washington on Friday to push for military and energy support at a time when Kyiv and Moscow are escalating the war with attacks on energy infrastructure.Indian officials are also in Washington for trade talks, with the U.S. having doubled tariffs on Indian goods and its…
Kyiv reports that a Russian drone and missile barrage has hit Ukraine's gas installations.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ukraine, said that Russia had launched an overnight attack on Ukraine targeting infrastructure with more than 300 drones. He said that the attack was on targets in central Vinnytsia, Poltava, and the northeastern regions of Sumy, Kharkiv, and Kharkiv. As the war enters its fourth year, Russia continues to attack Ukraine's power and energy facilities. Initially, it targeted electricity infrastructure but has this year increased its focus on gas infrastructure. Sergii Koretskyi is the CEO of Naftogaz. He said that there have been six major attacks this month on gas installations.
NATO will begin its annual nuclear drill Steadfast Noon on Monday.
Steadfast Noon will begin next week in the Netherlands, and 71 aircraft representing 14 countries will take part. Officials from the Western Military Alliance announced this on Friday. Rutte's remarks were recorded in a video at the Volkel airbase, Netherlands. This was the main host for this year’s drill. NATO has also announced that bases at Lakenheath, Britain, and Skrydstrup, Denmark, will be included. NATO officials confirmed that the exercise did not involve nuclear weapons, but rather simulated scenarios where they might be used. Russian officials have warned about the dangers of nuclear conflict with NATO since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Exxon not the only company that is interested in returning to Russia, says Kremlin
When asked on Wednesday about the possibility of Exxon Mobil returning to Russia, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that it was not only the U.S. oil major who wanted to return. Peskov said on RBC radio that "there are more than one company interested in reincarnating their presence on the Russian Market". Exxon was one of many Western companies that said they would leave Russia as soon as Moscow sent its troops into Ukraine in February 2022. Governments around the world condemned this move and began to impose sanctions. According to two sources who were familiar with the discussions, Exxon Mobil signed an initial non-binding agreement on Tuesday with Rosneft.
Sources say that Exxon has signed an initial agreement with Rosneft in order to map out a possible route to recover Russian losses.
According to sources familiar with these talks, U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil signed an initial non-binding agreement to help Exxon recover a $4.6 billion loss it took on its Russian activities in 2022 due to Moscow's invasion in Ukraine. The agreement is a first step in repairing the commercial ties between the two nations, but little progress will be made until Moscow has made enough progress towards a peace accord in Ukraine and the United States and European Union have relaxed their sanctions against Russia. Terry Wade, spokesperson for Exxon, declined to comment.
Democratic Senators: Trump administration gives China a 'free-pass' on Russian LNG
Democratic U.S. Senators called on Trump officials to resume targeted sanctions against Russian energy supplies on Friday, claiming that the administration allows China to purchase shipments of Russia’s liquefied gas which supports the war in Ukraine. Donald Trump said that he was frustrated by the failure of Russian President Vladimir Putin to reach a peaceful agreement with Ukraine. Trump, however, has not imposed direct sanctions against Russian energy companies during his second term. He has instead imposed an additional 25% tariff on goods imported from India in response to buying Russian oil.
The second known tanker to carry Russian Arctic LNG in China
Ship-tracking data revealed that another tanker carrying liquefied gas from Russia’s sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 Project docked at a Chinese port days after Russian president Vladimir Putin met China’s leader Xi Jinping. The LSEG data showed that the Russian LNG tanker Voskhod was anchored in the port Tieshan, in China's southwest province of Guangxi. LSEG data revealed that the Russian flagged LNG tanker with a cargo of 150 000 cubic metres was loaded at Arctic LNG 2 in Gydan, northern Siberia, on July 19. The cargo is the third from the project sanctioned to dock in China, after the tanker Arctic Mulan docked at the Beihai LNG Terminal in late August.
The tanker carrying Russian LNG sanctioned berths to China
According to data from ship tracking, a tanker carrying liquefied gas from Russia’s Arctic LNG 2 sanctioned project docked at a Chinese port days after Russian president Vladimir Putin met China’s leader Xi Jinping. LSEG data showed that the Russian LNG tanker Voskhod was "anchored" in a LNG terminal at Tieshan Port in southern Chinese province Guangxi. This is the second cargo from the project sanctioned to dock in China, after the tanker Arctic Mulan docked at China's Beihai LNG Terminal in late August. Arctic Mulan was the first cargo to reach an end user since Arctic LNG began last year.
India to Continue Buying Russian Oil Despite US Tariffs
India will continue to buy Russian oil as it proves economical, its finance minister said on Friday, despite the Trump administration's decision to impose heavy import tariffs on Indian goods due, in part, to its energy purchases from Moscow.As Europe and the U.S. have shunned Russian oil over Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, India has taken advantage of discounts on Russian output to become the largest buyer of Russian seaborne crude.New Delhi has said its purchases of Russian oil have kept the markets in balance.U.S. President Donald Trump…
Putin: Gas pipeline from China to Russia will benefit both countries, calculate price using market formula
The Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Friday that Power of Siberia 2 was a "mutually-beneficial project". He also said the price of gas would be determined by a formula similar to those used to supply gas to Europe. Russia proposed this route years ago. However, the plan is now more urgent as Beijing has been identified as the best alternative to Europe. Europe wants to reduce its dependence on Russian energy due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Russia and China signed an agreement to build the pipeline on the occasion of Putin's China visit this week. However, Russian energy company Gazprom said that pricing had not yet been agreed.
Trump is "very disappointed" with Putin about Ukraine
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, said he was "very dissatisfied" with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. He added that his administration planned to take certain actions to reduce deaths in Russia's conflict in Ukraine. The Republican leader said that he is not worried about the warm relations between Russia and China. Trump met with Putin and other key leaders of the European and NATO alliances at the White House in mid-August. Trump stated that he had expected Zelenskiy to meet with Putin bilaterally before they held a trilateral summit, which would include Trump. Zelenskiy said that Russia is doing all it can to prevent him from meeting with Putin.
Trump's options for easing Russia sanctions are limited in comparison to Europe
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, could lift some sanctions against Russia quickly as a way to reward Moscow for successful peace talks with Ukraine. However only Europe can make the larger steps necessary to ease Russia's cash crisis. Trump has threatened to impose additional sanctions and tariffs against Russia and its oil buyers if there are no signs of progress in the three-and-a-half-year long war in Ukraine. If the talks are successful, Trump could start to ease some of his punitive measures. Trump has a number of options, including releasing Russian assets, reopening U.S. loans to Russian corporations and banks, and allowing U.S.
Russian Seaborne Diesel Exports Fall in August
Russia's seaborne diesel and gasoil exports fell 6% on the month in August to about 3.1 million metric tons as damage from Ukrainian drone strikes hit production, data from market sources and LSEG showed.Last month Ukraine intensified drone attacks on Russian oil facilities, targeting major refineries and oil depots mainly in southern and central Russia daily ahead of a meeting between U.S.