US President Donald Trump has announced the imposition of sanctions against leading oil companies of the Russian Federation, including “Rosneft” and “Lukoil”. According to analysts, this will not lead to a complete paralysis of the Kremlin’s military machine, but it may help European Union countries finally rid themselves of dependence on Russian oil.
This is reported by Finway
Potential Consequences for Oil Exports from Russia
“Rosneft” and “Lukoil” supply approximately 66% of the 4.4 million barrels of oil that Russia exports daily. The new restrictions will limit the ability to sell oil for dollars, which, according to experts, could remove about half of this volume from the market. Although after a short pause, most buyers will likely seek ways to circumvent the sanctions, these measures could have a more significant impact on Europe.
The US Department of the Treasury has warned that sanctions could be applied to anyone who continues to cooperate with “Lukoil” or “Rosneft”. This means that European financial institutions will no longer be able to make payments to these companies. For countries like Hungary and Slovakia, this creates significant risks, as if the sanctions come into effect, the import of Russian oil could be completely halted.
Hungary’s Reaction and the US Position
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has already stated that the country is looking for ways to circumvent US sanctions. A meeting with Donald Trump is scheduled for next week, during which possible solutions to this issue will be discussed.
“The United States expects countries like Hungary, Turkey, and Slovakia to develop and implement a plan to reduce dependence on Russian energy resources. The US is ready to assist Hungary in the process of moving away from Russian oil and gas,” emphasized US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker.
Following the announcement of the new sanctions, within two days the capitalization of “Rosneft” and “Lukoil” decreased by 424 billion rubles (about 5.2 billion US dollars).
According to estimates from Ukraine, Russia could lose more than half of its oil exports due to the sanctions. This means a loss of about 100 billion dollars annually, or at least 5 billion dollars monthly – which will significantly reduce the inflow of oil dollars into the budget of the Russian Federation.