Russian hydrocarbon (Oil and Gas and Coal) Industry: News #4

The EU leadership does not care about the people of the EU, so why should US politicians care about the people of the EU... as long as they do as they are told nothing else is important.

More countries agree to ruble payments for gas– Russian deputy PM.

Moscow is awaiting decisions from other importers, Alexander Novak says.

Several buyers of Russian natural gas have agreed to switch to payment in rubles, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday.

“We expect the decision [to switch to rubles] from other importers,” Novak added, in comments published in the ministry’s magazine, without disclosing the identities of the customers who have already switched.

The deputy PM noted that EU countries will likely not be able to completely replace Russian energy in the next 5-10 years. It is impossible to talk about guaranteeing Europe’s energy security without Russian resources, he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that some Western countries are failing to pay on time for deliveries of Russian energy. Last month, Putin signed a decree that requires a new payment procedure for Russian gas starting on April 1, for buyers from hostile nations. The measure concerns countries that have imposed sanctions on Russia and have frozen its foreign reserves.

Russia has instructed buyers operating in countries designated as “unfriendly” to open two accounts in Russia’s Gazprombank, one in euros and one in rubles. Payment for gas would go to the euro account, after which the bank would exchange it into rubles. State-owned Gazprom will consider payments complete once the rubles arrive.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said this week the country is ready to pay for Russian gas in accordance with the proposed scheme. Szijjarto added that his country does not believe this violates the EU’s sanctions regime.

On Friday, Armenia’s economy minister, Vahan Kerobyan, told Russian media outlet RBC that Yerevan has made several payments for natural gas in rubles.

https://www.rt.com/business/553939-countries-ruble-payments-gas/

It is actually quite clever because it gives control of the conversion to the Russian bank, but means they can essentially be paying in Euros but rubles are involved in the transaction creating traffic and use for the rubles.

Also if the west gets nasty the bank can freeze the accounts or refuse to transfer the euros so the rubles don't get paid and Gazprom can turn the gas taps off... not that they are the unreliable entity in this arrangement.

I've been watching with interest this ship's voyage from Europe to Vladivostok .... all the way around South Africa
it is going to lay the pipes for Power of Siberia 3 ... or Far Eastern Route
the Sakhalin Island one.... to China

anyway its almost there ...

was 1/2 expecting the US to intercept it
but then I guess it probably had a Rus hunter killer sub trailing it ?

https://www.vesselfinder.com/vessels/AKADEMIK-CHERSKIY-IMO-8770261-MMSI-273399760

Gazprom gave details about the deal in its announcement.

Russian gas from its far east island of Sakhalin will be transported via pipeline across the Japan Sea to northeast China's Heilongjiang province, reaching up to 10 bcm a year around 2026, said the Beijing source, who asked not to be identified.

Gazputin wrote:I've been watching with interest this ship's voyage from Europe to Vladivostok .... all the way around South Africa
it is going to lay the pipes for Power of Siberia 3 ... or Far Eastern Route
the Sakhalin Island one.... to China

anyway its almost there ...

was 1/2 expecting the US to intercept it
but then I guess it probably had a Rus hunter killer sub trailing it ?

https://www.vesselfinder.com/vessels/AKADEMIK-CHERSKIY-IMO-8770261-MMSI-273399760

Gazprom gave details about the deal in its announcement.

Russian gas from its far east island of Sakhalin will be transported via pipeline across the Japan Sea to northeast China's Heilongjiang province, reaching up to 10 bcm a year around 2026, said the Beijing source, who asked not to be identified.

Going home to the Far East after its holiday in the Baltic.

As you say, that long way round route does allow for a suitable escort. On her way west she had surface warships with her all the way.

Nuclear weapons in economic warfare, by Gleb Prostakov for VZGLYAD. 16.05.2022.

If, for one reason or another, excess volumes of Russian oil cannot be sold on Asian markets, we can talk about reducing production, which, as you know, will not be able to be restored quickly. Such a scenario is fraught with the emergence of a global shortage of energy resources in the long term.

In recent days, the contours of the energy front in the confrontation between Russia and the West have become clearer. In early May, Gazprom finally entered the sanctions war by outlawing its subsidiaries in Germany (Gazprom Germania group of companies), which were previously subject to external management by the German government. Since May 11, these companies - distributors, operators of gas pipelines and gas storage facilities - have not received the Russian resource. Thus, the monopoly nullified the value of the assets actually confiscated from it.

Even more interesting is the situation with the transit of Russian gas to the EU. Two main routes for pumping gas - through the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline and the Ukrainian gas transportation system - failed. Back in March, Warsaw announced its refusal to buy Russian gas from 2023, hoping to compensate for losses through American LNG coming through the terminal in Svinouste, as well as reverse gas supplies through the same Yamal-Europe gas pipeline from Germany and France. Deliveries to Poland, however, ceased already at the end of April due to the refusal to pay for gas in rubles.

And on May 11, gas transit through Poland also stopped due to the imposition of Russian sanctions against the EuRoPol GAZ company, which owns the Polish section of the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline. This decision was also made ahead of schedule: gas transit through the Polish section of the Yamal-Europe pipeline was supposed to stop from the third quarter of this year - Gazprom did not reserve the capacity of the Polish section of the pipeline after the second quarter.

Even before the events in Ukraine, Poland actively opposed the implementation of the Nord Stream 2 project, hoping to become a major gas distribution hub in Europe due to the gas pipeline passing through it and the presence of a large offshore LNG receiving terminal. Now Poland has lost not only transit, but also supplies of Russian gas for its own needs. In the short term, Warsaw plays into the hands of a larger filling of its own gas storage facilities in comparison with the average European one. However, this trump card will play only if the current gas supplies to the country remain at the same levels, which is unlikely given that the specter of a gas shortage looms in Europe.

Since May 12, difficulties have also arisen in the Ukrainian section of gas transit, which until now has not had a visible effect of hostilities. The operator of the Ukrainian GTS, referring to the fact that one of the two gas measuring stations (GMS "Sokhrovka" in the Luhansk region) is under the control of the Russian armed forces, stopped the passage of gas through it. Gazprom refused to transfer the lost volumes of gas to another direction, in connection with which there was a threat of a reduction in gas transit through Ukraine by 30%. Gazprom's surprisingly calm reaction to the initiative of the Ukrainian side suggests that this situation is perceived by both sides as a winning one. Ukraine refuses already paid transit under the pretext of force majeure, Russia receives an excuse to reduce gas pumping to the EU.

Against the backdrop of the blocking of the Yamal-Europe pipe and the threat of a significant drop in transit volumes through the Ukrainian GTS, the news from Switzerland looks interesting. More precisely, from the Swiss canton of Zug, where Nord Stream 2 AG, the operator of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, is registered. So, on May 10, it became known that the court suspended the company's bankruptcy proceedings until September 10, while providing it with full protection from creditors' claims. The buried project of a gas pipeline along the bottom of the Baltic Sea can be unexpectedly revived at the initiative of the European Union if transit through existing pipes becomes a stake.

There is also confusion on the oil front. The sixth package of EU sanctions against Russia, expected at the end of April, has stalled. The reason is the disagreement of the member countries on a key issue: the imposition of an embargo on Russian oil. Hungary, the toughest opponent of the embargo, explains its decision by the EU's lack of a plan to compensate Budapest for losses related to the cut-off in supplies. Largely dependent on Russian oil, Slovakia and the Czech Republic also oppose the embargo, but from a softer position, demanding for themselves a delay in the entry into force of this decision. At the same time, it is becoming increasingly clear that an incomplete embargo will simply create a competitive advantage for the re-export of Russian oil by those countries that can avoid the bans.

The other day, the British Financial Times, citing the EU energy transition project, reported that ensuring the energy independence of the European Union from Russia will require an additional 195 billion euros over the next five years. Moreover, these are only direct costs associated with the cessation of supplies, which do not include the many times higher costs that should be directed to the construction of new LNG terminals, investments in green hydrogen and other projects to diversify energy sources. With the rapidly deteriorating economic situation in the EU, simultaneously waging a sanctions war with Russia and implementing a costly energy transition could be a daunting task.

As for Russia, the decline in oil and gas supplies to the EU is more than compensated for by rising prices. Thus, according to Bloomberg, citing a report by the International Energy Agency, since the beginning of 2022, Russia has increased its oil revenues by 1.5 times. If, for one reason or another, the excess resource fails to be sold on Asian markets, we can talk about reducing production, which, as you know, cannot be restored quickly. Such a scenario is fraught with the emergence of a global energy shortage in the long term, and this is a kind of nuclear weapon in an economic war.

https://vz.ru/opinions/2022/5/16/1158227.html

Russia restores oil export volumes— Novak. 19.05.2022.

The Deputy Prime Minister noted that Russia increased oil production in May by 200,000-300,000 barrels per day after the decline in April.

Russia is restoring oil exports, it is impossible to talk about a crisis in the industry, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday.

"We are in constant contact with our oil and gas companies and we do not see any serious problems that would indicate that our industry is in some kind of crisis. Yes, we received a certain shock that allowed us to find new balance points and enter new export opportunities, including redirecting energy resources to new markets, creating new supply chains. We are looking for new partners, additionally solving financing issues - the problems that the industry has faced due to sanctions," he said.

He added that Russia increased oil production in May by 200,000-300,000 barrels per day (bpd) after the decline in April. In June, the recovery of production will continue, Novak said. "In March-April, as a result of the shock, we saw a slight decline in production and oil refining - around 10-14%," he said.

"We have already started to rebound in May and we see that production is already increasing. In April we reduced production by around 1 mln bpd and in May, we already increased it by 200,000-300,000 bpd. And we expect that recovery will also continue in June," Novak added.

According to the forecast of the Ministry of Economic Development, in 2022, Russian oil exports will decrease by 1.2% to 228.3 mln tonnes after 231 mln tonnes in 2021 and to 224.8 mln tonnes in 2023. In 2024-2025, exports are expected to grow to 228.1 mln tonnes and 229.5 mln tonnes, respectively.

https://tass.com/economy/1453301.

Media: Gazprom's superprofits fully paid off Nord Stream 2, 20.05.2022.

Against the backdrop of a sharp rise in gas prices, Russia in 2022 can receive a record $ 100 billion for deliveries to Europe, Gazprom's superprofits fully paid off the Nord Stream 2 project, columnist Vincent Colin writes in an article for the French edition of Echos, citing Citi analysts.

The author of the publication noted that EU countries send $200 million to Gazprom daily, despite "sanctions, loud statements and embargo promises," RIA Novosti reports .

“Thanks to the surge in prices, Russia should get $100 billion for gas shipped to Europe this year, nearly double what it was last year, when prices were already high. And this is without taking into account income from oil, coal and other raw materials,” Colin said.

In his opinion, Russia has won the first round of the "energy battle" because even if the European Union starts buying a little less gas, the jump in prices will compensate for the drop in supplies. “By threatening [Russia] with an embargo but not taking any action, the Europeans have fallen into a trap, and [Russian President] Vladimir Putin is gaining the upper hand in this situation,” the article says. The author also expressed the opinion that Gazprom's superprofits fully paid off the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

https://vz.ru/news/2022/5/20/1159284.html

I think Poland had already paid for Nord Stream 2 with their silly little lawsuit to change the gas pricing formula to the European gas market price, instead of being indexed to the oil price?

Anyway, the problem isn't Gazprom, they are only supposed to foot half of the bill for the pipeline. The problem is those other European energy companies which are on the hook for the rest. And which Europe now wants to squeeze to lower consumer energy prices. If I was them I would be suing their governments.

In his opinion, Russia has won the first round of the "energy battle" because even if the European Union starts buying a little less gas, the jump in prices will compensate for the drop in supplies. “By threatening [Russia] with an embargo but not taking any action, the Europeans have fallen into a trap, and [Russian President] Vladimir Putin is gaining the upper hand in this situation,” the article says. The author also expressed the opinion that Gazprom's superprofits fully paid off the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

The core of the issue is that Putin has not been playing the EU... the US has.... it wants higher gas prices so their gas becomes competitive and they can replace Russia in the EU market for gas supplies even if they don't have the capacity to fill the needs.

Putin set no trap, the whole situation comes from EU greed and stupidity and US greed.

Changing from long term contracts to spot prices was always going to ramp up the price of anything. Long term contracts create stability for both sides which enables lower prices and long term planning and management.

US actions in the Ukraine were designed to start a war with Russia... nazis, bio weapons, the promise of nukes, and the fact that Kiev was going to start something anyway meant Putin would be a fool not to start things himself and therefore get control of the situation... and he is no fool.

Letting Kiev start a conflict risked lives and control of the battlefield... it risked suffering a Moscow Theatre attack or a Beslan type situation... perhaps an attack on the Crimean bridge for instance.

Either way... the EU wont get cheap Russian gas ever again, they will redirect it to Asia and the use of gas will expand in Asia because it will be cheaper and so much more convenient than coal because it flows through pipes...

This situation does not please Putin... he wont be happy losing soldiers to this BS that could easily have been avoided without US meddling to create this very situation, so he will be determined to make sure he gets this right so it is not repeated and needs to be done again.

But of course the west will continue to blame Putin and Russia for everything... it is their crutch because otherwise they would have to accept and acknowledge their own guilt in creating this situation and rejecting Putins offers for cooperation and trade.

The cost will be in human lives but also inflation that for a change the west is actually going to start to feel.

Will they lift their heads out of the sand and wonder why it is this way because the west certainly does not benefit from cutting ties and relations with Russia and then China and gradually more and more of the rest of the world.

Ahh but the rest of the world is poor and weak, but working and trading with Russia and China how long will that remain the case.... they remained poor and weak because the west wanted it that way... Russia and China became strong and powerful despite the west trying to stop them... can they do the same for the rest of the world too... change is afoot. Good change. Will the west embrace it or try to fight it? This choice will determine the future of the US led west.

Under the new contract. Envious looks from neighbouring countries no doubt.

Spriteer
@spriteer_774400
·
45m
Vucic explained that the gas price for Serbia, according to his data, will be from 310 dollars per thousand cubic meters.

Any excess gas they could sell to their neighbours for say... $800 per thousand cubic metres and they will still be saving money on the spot price... or $3,000 per thousand cubic metres for those countries refusing to buy in rubles...

Remember when the EU wanted to pay $40 USD or less per tcm?

Remember when the EU wanted to pay $40 USD or less per tcm?

Yeah, the plan was build storage tanks in the EU and buy up gas when it is off season and cheap and then not buy any in winter when the price goes up...

Essentially they were trying to screw Russia with the pricing system to get even cheaper gas... they already pay just a fraction of what other pay in other markets... but no now they don't... US gas suppliers normally going to Asia are turning and going to Europe because the price being paid there makes it worth it.

It is the dog crossing the bridge and seeing a dog reflected in the water with a bone... he barks in the hope the other dog will drop its bone and he can steal it but when he barks both bones disappear in a splash and then neither dog has a bone... but a dog is too dumb to realise the other dog is a reflection of himself so just like the EU... no lesson is learned... the next time they cross a bridge with a bone they will bark again because they are still greedy and still stupid.

I wonder if Russia could strike a deal with Serbia to give decent price gas for use of selling to other nations in Europe so both Russia and Serbia wins. Heck, Serbia could really win big with that.

No need for any formal deal... they can just order way more than they actually need and pay Russia for that gas and then it is theirs and they are free to sell it on to anyone they please... they could hold auctions to get the best price... make sure the reserve price is double or triple what they paid for it and they will make good money.

From a Russian perspective... why should they care... it is extra gas sales via contract that give stability and a good income. If things get really bad they should do the same with Turkey... sell to Turkey what they want and let the other countries being supplied by South Stream to negotiate with Turkey for their gas supplies.

That way it wont be Russias problem except in the case of sales to Serbia the transit fees on the way to their pipelines.

Knowing what bastards they have for neighbours they will make demands to let it through...

The Dutch not willing to pay for gas supplies may be characterized as technical default.

Kremlin evaluates gas-for-rubles strategy, 09.06.2022.

The new payment method is working successfully, Dmitry Peskov says.

Russian gas buyers that have refused to pay in rubles have already been cut off from supplies, Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, adding that no new cuts have been planned.

“They have already been turned off… The system is working, the system has been adjusted,” he told journalists. “Those who receive gas are already working according to the new system, which is defined in the relevant decree of the president of Russia.”

The new payment mechanism was introduced by Moscow on April 1 and applies only to countries that have imposed economic sanctions on Russia. The conditions require buyers to open two accounts in Gazprombank – one in rubles and one in foreign currency. The buyer can deposit their currency of choice in their foreign currency account. The Russian bank automatically exchanges the currency into rubles, which are then transferred to the customer’s ruble account for payment to Gazprom.

EU countries including the Netherlands, Poland and Finland, as well as some companies in Denmark and Germany, have refused to comply and had their gas supplies cut. Others, like Hungary’s MVM, and Germany’s RWE and Uniper, have agreed to the new payment method and continue to receive Russian gas.

https://www.rt.com/business/556864-kremlin-evaluates-gas-rubles-strategy/

an "economist" ?
stupid old jewish bitch .... seriously
if you restrict supply .... and demand stays constant
then prices will rise ..... it's a no brainer
durrrrrrrrr .... the law of supply and demand .... economics chapter 1 .... page 1 ..... paragraph 1 ... sentence no.1 ....

she makes President Brandon seem intelligent .... and that isn't easy
(is there a strain of airborne syphilis circulating in Brussels and Washington ? .... nothing else can explain such deluded drivel)

Yellen was asked at the New York Times’ DealBook DC Policy Forum on Thursday whether it was possible to assemble “a cartel” of buyers of Russian oil to prevent the prices from going too high.

“There would need to be a reasonably large group of countries that would go along with it. And it would be necessary to create such a coalition,” Yellen replied.

“But I would point out that the European Union has already announced that they will phase out Russian oil purchases, but beyond that, they’ve said that they will also prohibit European countries from insuring tanker shipments out of Russia, and the UK is very likely to go along with such a ban. And that could have the effect of locking in a good deal of Russian oil.”

a "country" with less than 2mil people
there are that many people taking a piss in Shanghai right this second ....
anyway ....

"Baltic nation to see gas tariffs double

Gas tariffs for Latvian households are expected to surge by nearly 90%, the country’s energy company Latvijas Gaze said on Friday, as quoted by Latvijas Vestnesis, the country's government gazette.

The company, which deals in the importation and sale of natural gas, announced it was planning to increase natural gas tariffs between 65.6% and 89.9%, depending on consumption."


Latvia pop. 1991 - 2.7 million (intelligent population 27)
Latvia pop. 2022 - 1.8 million (intelligent population 18)

with such genii in charge I estimate that the Latvian "Nation" will be extinct by 2028 ....

Gazputin wrote:“But I would point out that the European Union has already announced that they will phase out Russian oil purchases, but beyond that, they’ve said that they will also prohibit European countries from insuring tanker shipments out of Russia, and the UK is very likely to go along with such a ban. And that could have the effect of locking in a good deal of Russian oil.”

This is so retarded. So no one else has the financial industry and the capital to make an insurance market for these ships? If no one else does it I bet Russia's financial centers in St. Petersburg or Moscow will do it. Or maybe the Chinese centers in Hong Kong or Shanghai. Even if none of these centers existed a lot of companies would just self-insure. Because that also exists.

Gazputin wrote:Latvia pop. 1991 - 2.7 million    (intelligent population 27)
Latvia pop. 2022 - 1.8 million    (intelligent population 18)
with such genii in charge I estimate that the Latvian "Nation" will be extinct by 2028 ....

But remember it was the Soviet Union and Communism which were evil. And Stalin was genocidal maniac according to the Black Book of Communism. I think the idiot who wrote that book should be slapped with these numbers on his face for all eternity.

Russia becomes India's 2nd largest oil supplier, 13.06.2022.

Russia became India's second-largest crude oil supplier in May as New Delhi is stockpiling the Russian commodity at a discount, Reuters reported on Monday, citing trade sources.

According to the report, Indian refineries received about 819,000 barrels per day of Russian oil last month, compared to about 277,000 in April. 

Iraq retained its position as India's largest oil supplier, while Saudi Arabia, which was previously India's second-largest exporter, fell to third place.

Overall, India's oil imports in May totaled 4.98 million barrels per day, an increase of 5.6% from the previous month and about 19% from the previous year, as domestic refineries were forced to increase production amid rising demand.

Many oil buyers began to despise Russian oil when Western sanctions hit the country in response to Russia's military operation in Ukraine, launched in late February. The UK and US have gone so far as to place an embargo on Russian oil, with the EU also planning the move in a few months. Russia, meanwhile, offered record discounts on its oil to attract buyers, prompting China and India to step up their purchases.

Despite calls to cut ties with Russia, India said it needed extra oil supplies to avoid a rise in fuel prices at home and noted that its Russian imports accounted for a mere fraction of the country's overall oil needs.

Yandex Translate from Portuguese

https://www.brasil247.com/mundo/russia-se-torna-2-maior-fornecedor-de-petroleo-da-india

in Euros

This kind of chart is highly misleading because it only counts direct sales.

For example Poland is not buying any Russian gas right now. They get it from Germany who get it from Russia.

The UK does not get Russian gas and oil. They buy it from the Netherlands and they got it from Russia. That is how such a pipsqueak nation like the Netherlands lists so highly in that chart. They are a hub basically. That is how they import the same energy as Italy despite having only a third of their population. Even while having natural gas deposits and Italy having none. This is pretty much bollocks and this is why you find a lot of nations now buying "indulgences" by making someone else take the flak.