EU bought €1.1bn of laundered Russian oil last year, say activists

THE EU bought €1.1bn (£940m) worth of laundered Russian oil last year despite sanctions, human rights group Global Witness has claimed.

Analysis of export and shipping data suggests the EU imported 130m barrels of oil products – mostly diesel – from refineries processing Russian crude.

It estimates these purchases were worth €1.1bn to the Kremlin in direct tax revenues. The EU imposed sanctions on Russian oil in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. However, other nations, notably India and China, have continued to import crude from Russia.

Often, crude is imported to be refined into products such as petrol and diesel that are then exported. Refining reclassifies the product under export rules, despite the origin of the base crude used to make the finished product. There is no suggestion that sanctions have been broken but the report highlights the gaps in the current regime.

Chris Lambin at Global Witness said: “Whether it’s crude oil or refined products, every penny spent on Russian oil helps pay for the Kremlin’s war of aggression on Ukraine. The EU should move to close the refining loophole at once and sever one of its last remaining ties to Russian oil.”

It follows similar investigations in the UK. Last August, Global Witness claimed that one in every 20 UK flights ran on jet fuel made from Russian oil.

The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, which tracks Russian energy exports by value and destination, estimates the Kremlin has earned €605bn from fossil fuel exports since February 2022 when it invaded Ukraine.

Researcher Isaac Levi said: “Russian oil is reaching not just the EU but also the UK via the refined oil loophole that allows third countries to process Russian crude and export refined products to sanctioning countries.”

The findings coincided with new data showing trade between the UK and Russia has continued across a range of products and services, as well as energy.

British businesses exported £1.7bn worth of goods to Russia in the 12 months to the end of September 2023 and £561m of goods were imported from Russia. A spokesman for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said it banned all imports of Russian fossil fuels, including oil and oil products, in December 2022.

It added: “Importers must now include the country of last despatch to ensure oil from Russia is not being diverted through other countries.

“Since the ban came into effect there has been no import of Russian oil and oil products into the UK.”

The EU was contacted for comment.