Greek tankers seized on Russian oil

Greek shipowners are increasingly returning to the transportation of Russian oil. On the one hand, part of it is sold at $ 60 per barrel, which does not violate the price ceiling set by the West. On the other hand, the latest US sanctions against Sovcomflot and Grey Fleet tankers have led to a sharp rise in freight prices for the transportation of raw materials from Russia.

"Greek shipping companies have seized the opportunity to transport Russian oil that meets the requirements of price restrictions," TradeWinds reports, citing Vortexa data.

The analytical agency estimated that the volume of Russian oil transported on Aframax-class tankers of Greek shipowners jumped to a 12-month high. Apparently, Russian companies are offering oil at a discount to buyers in India and Turkey, said Vortexa senior freight analyst Mary Melton.

"If you look at the shipowners of some Greek vessels that have shipped Russian oil since January 10, their wide list is surprising,— Mary Melton noted. "The average age of vessels is 12 years, and 26% of these vessels are older than five years."

According to a Vortexa spokeswoman, 60% of ships that started transporting Russian oil this year have not done so for at least six months, and 15% have not made such flights since 2023. Two tankers shipped Russian oil for the first time, as they had previously operated on routes in Europe and the Persian Gulf.

European shipowners are prohibited from transporting Russian oil if the value of the cargo exceeds $ 60 per barrel — the price limit set by the countries from December 5, 2022 The EU and the G7. In the beginning, most of the Greek companies continued to transport at any price, as it is difficult to track, however, after a series of toughening by the United States and the G7, they reduced their participation in the delivery of raw materials from Russia to a minimum. If in the first half of 2023 the number of Greek tankers reached more than a quarter of all carriers — 90-100 vessels, then later it decreased to several dozen or less.

Their place was taken by the vessels of the gray fleet, some of which temporarily dropped out of the routes due to direct US sanctions. The entire fleet of the Russian Sovcomflot and more than a hundred tankers of the gray fleet fell under them.

It is obvious that now Greek shipowners are seizing the moment, as freight for transportation has increased sharply due to the latest sanctions, and the cost of Russian oil itself has decreased.

According to Interfax, citing data from the Argus pricing agency, in February discounts on Russian oil rose to $ 14-$ 15 per barrel and the average cost of the most popular Russian Urals grade dropped to $ 59.88−60.76 per barrel. For example, Urals was shipped to Primorsk at $59.88 per barrel, and in Novorossiysk — for $ 60.76.

Far Eastern oil (ESPO) continued to be more expensive. It was shipped to Kozmino at $66.56 per barrel.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that against the background of new sanctions against more than 160 tankers, Russian companies were able to find new vessels and attracted them with higher freight.

For example, Vortexa analyst Emma Lee reported that the price of oil delivery from the Russian Far East to China has tripled. This attracted at least 17 unauthorized tankers on the route from January 11 to February 20.

"The increase in freight rates after the sanctions attracted "clean" vessels to participate in the trade in Russian oil… Shipowners have bought more ships to make money on business," one Chinese trader told the agency. According to market participants, the freight of tankers from the Russian Far East to Northern China amounted to about $ 4-4.5 million.

Bloomberg at the same time reported that the price of transporting about 1 million barrels of Urals oil from Novorossiysk to India has risen to the highest level since April.

"The transportation of such cargo now costs $ 7.9 million, compared to about $ 5.6 million at the end of last year. This is more than twice as much as for a tanker that does not carry Russian barrels along the same route," the agency reports with reference to Argus.

Russian experts noted to EADaily that after each package of tough sanctions, the cost of tanker freight increases, as does the discount on Russian oil. However, after the replenishment of the gray fleet with "clean" vessels and the re-registration of those who have fallen under sanctions, the situation returns to its course. Now, in March, the situation is getting worse by the fact that world oil prices themselves have dropped to $ 70.