Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register MOSCOW, Aug 22 (Reuters) – Turkey has doubled its imports of Russian oil this year, Refinitiv Eikon data showed on Monday, as the two countries are poised for greater cooperation in business and particularly energy trade in the face of Western sanctions against Moscow . Trade between Turkey and Russia has been booming since the spring, as Turkish companies that had not been banned from doing business with Russian counterparts stepped in to fill the void created by EU businesses leaving Russia after its invasion of Ukraine earlier this year. . Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a “special military operation”. Turkey has increased oil imports from Russia, including the Urals and Siberian Light grades, to more than 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) so far this year compared with just 98,000 bpd for the same period in 2021, Refinitiv data showed. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Turkey has not imposed sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine, saying it remains dependent on Russian energy supplies. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan met in early August and agreed to strengthen business cooperation. read more Turkey’s main refiners Tupras and Azerbaijan’s SOCAR’s STAR refinery significantly increased their intake of Russian Urals and Siberian Light crude this year, while reducing purchases of North Sea, Iraqi and West African grades, the data showed. In recent years, the STAR refinery has increased purchases of Norwegian Johan Sverdrup and Iraqi oil, which approach the Urals in quality, as the price of Russian oil rises. This year, Russian oil prices fell to historic lows against the dated benchmark Brent, while North Sea and Iraqi oil prices improved. Refinery STAR is expected to buy about 90,000 bpd of oil from Russia in January-August 2022 compared with 48,000 bpd in the same period a year earlier, according to data from Refinitiv Eikon. Tupras refiners will buy about 111,000 bpd of oil from Russia in January to August this year compared with just 45,000 bpd in the same period last year, the data showed. “The choice for Turkey’s refineries was obvious as they have no limits on buying oil from Russia,” said a trader in the Mediterranean oil market, who declined to be identified as he is not authorized to speak to the press. He added that good Urals oil refining margins supported Turkey’s refiners’ profits. Turkey’s energy ministry, Tupras and SOCAR did not immediately respond to Reuters for comment. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Reuters reporters. Additional reporting by Can Sezer. Edited by Josie Kao Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
