Asian Buyers Shun Russian Oil Despite ‘Incredibly’ Cheap Prices
- Open tender for Sokol crude met with no takers on Thursday
- Tone set for Russia’s ESPO, which starts trading next week
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Zero bidders. That was the outcome of a recent attempt to sell Russian crude typically favored by Asian buyers as more of the nation’s oil is shunned after its invasion of Ukraine.
Sokol oil from the Sakhalin-I project in Russia’s Far East was offered by ONGC Videsh for May-loading, with the latest price indications showing deep discounts for the grade. The failure to attract bids follows a similar pattern to Russia’s Urals crude, which has struggled for buyers despite being incredibly cheap.