Russia is increasing oil drilling despite sanctions – Kommersant

Over the 11 months of 2023, Russia drilled oil wells with a total depth of 28.1 thousand km, reports Bloomberg. The agency notes that Russia may break the post-Soviet record in terms of drilling rates. According to analysts from Kpler and Yakova and Partners, in general, in 2023 the volume of production drilling in the country will exceed 30 thousand km.

According to Bloomberg, last year Russia achieved record oil production rates for the second year in a row. As the agency notes, this is further evidence of the country’s resistance to Western sanctions. However, “the frantic pace of drilling against the background of fairly static production” indicates some long-term problems that may accumulate in the Russian oil sector as a result of the international isolation of the Russian Federation, Bloomberg believes. According to him, the Russian industry is making every effort to maintain production at the oldest wells, while new projects that should ensure the maintenance of production in the coming decades are forced to “adapt to changed circumstances.”

According to calculations by the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, as of 2022, fields that had been in production for more than five years accounted for almost 96% of all liquids production in Russia. Many of these mining projects are well past their peak production levels, experts say.

Bloomberg reportedthat Russia earns more from oil trading than before the introduction of a ceiling on it by the G7 countries and the European Union. According to the agency’s calculations, profit from the sale of raw materials in October 2023 was the highest since May 2022, amounting to $11 billion. According to Kommersant, Russian oil companies are sharply increasing oil exports through the port of Kozmino, from where it is delivered by tankers mainly to China. In December, oil shipments from this Far Eastern port again reached a historical maximum, amounting to 925 thousand barrels per day.

Details – in the material “Kommersant” “With the ports wide open”.

Laura Keffer