MOSCOW, March 6. /TASS/. Despite the restrictions imposed by Western countries on February 5 - an embargo on fuel supplies by sea, as well as price caps - Russia will not significantly reduce the volume of oil refining in March, according to the analytical report of the Energy Development Center.
"In our opinion, refining is unlikely to decrease significantly in March, and major changes may occur in April due to the implementation of the new damper formula and the start of the spring overhaul program," the report said.
According to experts, companies will try to maintain refining volumes if they can find foreign markets for their oil products, as exports of oil products are still more favourable than oil.
On December 5, 2022, an embargo on maritime oil supplies from Russia to the European Union came into force. The EU, the Group of Seven (the UK, Germany, Italy, Canada, USA, France, Japan), as well as Australia, agreed on a price cap for Russian oil supplied by sea at $60 per barrel. From February 5, 2023, similar restrictions on the supply of petroleum products from Russia came into effect. The price cap was set at $100 and $45 per barrel, depending on the category of oil products.