Through the first 100 days of the war, Russia earns $98 billion from fossil fuel exports

Through the first 100 days of the war in Ukraine, Russia earned €93 billion ($98 billion) from fossil fuel exports during, according to research published on Monday. Exports mostly sent to the European Union, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

Kyiv urges the West to cut off all trade with Russia and Kremlin’s financial lifeline.

EU agreed in the beginning of June to terminate most Russian oil imports, on which the continent is heavily dependent. Despite the bloc focuses on reducing gas shipments by two-thirds this year, a ban is not in the cards at present.

EU took 61 percent of Russia’s fossil fuel exports through the war’s first 100 days, worth about €57 billion ($60 billion), the report said.

China was the top importers at €12.6 billion, Germany €12.1 billion and Italy €7.8 billion.

Russia’s fossil fuel revenues get first from the trading of crude oil (46 billion), followed by pipeline gas, oil products, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and coal.

Moreover, Russia’s exports dropped down in May, due to the countries and companies avoiding its supplies over the Ukraine invasion. The global rise in fossil fuel prices continued to fill the Kremlin’s coffers, with export revenues are skyrocket.

CREA stated that the prices of Russia’s average export were about 60 percent higher than last year. Some countries have upped their purchases from Moscow, including China, India, the United Arab Emirates and France, the report said.

“As the EU is considering stricter sanctions against Russia, France has increased its imports to become the largest buyer of LNG in the world,” CREA analyst Lauri Myllyvirta said.

Since most of these are spot purchases rather than long-term contracts, France is consciously deciding to use Russian energy in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Myllyvirta concluded. He talks about an embargo on Russian fossil fuels to align actions with words.