Sanctions in Action: China Refuses to Accept Tankers With Russian Oil, India Plans to Do the Same

Three tankers with more than 2 million barrels of Russian oil have stopped in the waters off China's east coast due to new US sanctions against Russia's largest oil companies imposed on 10 January. This was reported by Bloomberg.  

The Huihai Pacific tanker, loaded with almost 770,000 barrels of ESPO crude oil from the Russian port of Kozmino, was due to arrive at the port of Dongjiakou in Shandong Province on 15 January. However, it changed course and is currently at sea.  

Another tanker, the Mermar, with more than 755,000 barrels of ESPO, also left Kozmino on 5 January and was heading for the port of Yantai, but is currently offshore.  

The third tanker, the Olia, which left Kozmino on 7 January with a cargo of 709,000 barrels, is currently in the Yellow Sea.  

The reason for the delay was the decision of Shandong Port Group Co. to call on terminals in Shandong province to stop accepting tankers under US sanctions.  

India has also announced that it will refuse to accept oil tankers under sanctions. According to a senior official, vessels chartered before 10 January will be able to unload until 12 March, but the rest will be blocked.  

Indian refiners are already looking at alternative sources of supply, particularly from the Middle East, and are ready to enter into new term contracts. However, this could lead to the loss of discounts on Russian oil that they had previously received.  

Also, Indian banks will tighten control over certificates of origin to avoid purchasing crude oil under sanctions.  

The effects of the sanctions are expected to be felt in a few months, but India's oil supply will remain stable thanks to alternative suppliers such as OPEC countries, the US, Canada, Brazil and Guyana.  

As previously reported by The Gaze, the United States and the United Kingdom have announced sanctions against Russia's largest oil companies, Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegaz.