Despite promises to stop purchasing Russian oil, Shell has not stopped doing so at all. Bloomberg columnist Javier Blas writes. According to the energy specialist, Shell supplies a so-called “Latvian mixture”, which consists of up to 49.99 percent Russian oil. In that case, according to Shell, the oil is no longer of Russian origin. What Shell is doing is not prohibited, but the company previously said it would completely stop with Russian oil.
Read all about the conflict in Ukraine in our file.
The blending of the oil is named after the Latvian place Ventspils where Russian oil comes in and is mixed with other oil. According to Blas, this also happens in the Netherlands and even at sea, where oil is pumped back and forth between two ships. The term “Latvian mixture” has therefore become for many traders an indication for any form of mixed Russian oil.
In a response, the oil and gas group states that there would always be a “phased phasing out of Russian oil products”. The company does state that it has immediately stopped buying oil from Russia on the spot market, where batches are traded. Shell therefore disregards longer-term contracts, as does the purchase of batches of mixed oil. It pledged to cut off Russian oil after a purchase of a batch of Russian oil came under heavy criticism following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Diesel
Mixing oil is one way to ensure that enough oil products remain available. In particular for diesel, Europe is heavily dependent on Russia. However, not all oil companies do the same as Shell. For example, the French company TotalEnergies states that it will not supply any oil of which even the smallest part comes from Russia. The Spanish Repsol also uses this line.
Previous sanctions against countries also often involved trading in mixed oil. For example, oil from Venezuela in Asia was available for many years as a “Malaysian blend” or “Singapore blend”.
Also read:
Estimated to the euro: what do the 5 government tips for saving energy mean for you? †
Antwerp diamond sector helps finance war in Ukraine: diamond money flows to Russian war submarines †
European Parliament demands complete embargo on Russian oil and gas, what exactly does that mean?
Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!
Log in or create an account and never miss a thing from the stars.