Why this country refuses to refine Russian crude oil

Pakistan's The News International recently quoted energy industry sources as saying that the country has temporarily stopped importing crude oil from Russia after the oil refining process produced more oil than gasoline.

Doanh thu xuất khẩu dầu tiếp tục tăng, đây là cách Nga kiếm bộn tiền từ ‘tác dụng phụ’ của lệnh trừng phạt. (Nguồn: nhk-maritime.com)

In July, Russian crude oil prices exceeded $60 per barrel, the price ceiling imposed by G7 countries on this product. (Source: nhk-maritime.com)

On August 13, the newspaper quoted industry sources as saying that so far, Pakistani refineries have refused to refine all Russian oil despite the insistence of former State Secretary Musadik Malik.

The reason is said to be that imported Russian oil, when refined, yields less gasoline and burns 20% more oil than crude oil from Arab countries.

In fact, only two Russian crude oil tankers arrived at Karachi port on June 11 and 26, after which no more Russian oil tankers arrived in Pakistan.

According to experts, only in case Brent crude and Arab Light crude prices continue to rise while Russian oil prices do not increase, buying oil from Moscow can be beneficial for Islamabad.

However, analysts believe that the chances of such a situation are very slim.

Russia is benefiting from rising global oil prices. The country earned $15.3 billion from exporting crude oil and oil products in July 2023, up nearly 20% from the previous month. This is an eight-month high, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

In July, Russian crude oil prices exceeded the $60/barrel threshold, the price ceiling imposed by the G7 countries on this product. The average seaborne export price increased by $8.8/barrel to $64.4/barrel.

However, compared to last year, oil export revenue is still down nearly 20%. Oil is the main source of income for the Russian budget, which is struggling due to the conflict with Ukraine and Western sanctions.

Source