Russia is working to redirect its energy supplies to Turkey and Morocco by adapting to the EU embargo, price capping and lack of tankers.

Rabat – Russia is set to increase its diesel exports this month despite the EU embargo on Russian energy products.

The European Union has historically been Russia's main customer. However, since the start of the Ukraine war in February 2021, the West retaliated by imposing a set of sanctions that include energy products.

According to a Reuters report, Russia is now working to redirect its energy supplies as it increases supplies to Turkiye and Morocco in a bid to adapt to the EU embargo, price capping and lack of tankers.

Russian energy products will be fully embargoed starting Sunday, and the G7 - a group of rich countries - is also working to cap Russian fuel prices, that is, put a limit on how high prices can rise.

Despite these restrictions, Russian exports of diesel and low-sulfur gasoil are expected to grow by 5% in February, reaching 4.3 million tonnes, the Reuters report indicates.

Apart from the EU embargo, adverse weather will affect Russian diesel shipments. "Ships of refined products could be affected by stormy weather at the Black Sea ports of Novorossiysk and Tuapse," a trader told Reuters.

Embargoing other countries has historically been the default measure for governments seeking to pressure other governments. However, history shows that energy embargoes only push countries to redirect their supplies and cause a huge increase in much-needed energy products.

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, energy prices have reached record levels, with a barrel of oil surpassing $100 (Dh1,000) in March of that same year. The threat to energy security led many experts to predict that the EU could be heading towards a new recession that would cause a domino effect in other economies, especially emerging markets.

Source: MoroccoWorldNews