finance
Saudi Arabia Bought 1.23 Million Tons of Russian Fuel Oil in May
Saudi Arabia remained the largest buyer of Russian fuel oil last month even as overall Russian shipments declined. The imports rose sharply after production shut-ins began in March amid the Hormuz crisis.
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com reported. Russia’s vessel shipments of fuel oil and vacuum gasoil totaled about 3.2 million metric tons in May, down 6 percent from April, according to shipment data cited by Reuters and traders. Saudi imports fell 17 percent from April but stayed at elevated levels compared with periods before the Iran war.
Saudi Arabia became the leading buyer of Russian fuel oil two years ago after the European Union embargo on Russian oil products took effect in 2023. Imports rose 18 percent in March from February after the Iran war and Hormuz crisis triggered widespread shut-ins of oil and gas production across the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia uses direct crude burn for power generation and turned to Russian fuel oil to preserve more of its own crude for export through the Yanbu port on the Red Sea.
Within weeks of the Strait of Hormuz closure, the kingdom increased East-West pipeline flows from about 2 million barrels per day to 7 million barrels per day.
