Tanker freight rates for Russian crude oil rise in August amid EU sanctions, higher exports

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Freight rates for Russian crude shipments from Baltic ports to India have risen in August, driven by fresh European Union sanctions and increased demand for tankers after higher loading volumes this month, trade sources said and shipping data showed.

The cost of shipping Urals crude from Baltic ports such as Ust-Luga to India has climbed to about $6 million per one-way trip, up from $5.3 million to $5.5 million in July and early August.

Rates for similar shipments from Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiisk by Suezmax tankers, which can hold 140,000 metric tons, have risen to around $5.5 million from $5.2 million a month earlier.

Russia has revised up its August crude oil export plan from western ports by 200,000 barrels per day from the initial schedule after Ukrainian drone attacks disrupted refinery operations and freed up more crude for exports.

The European Union and Britain last month imposed further sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine.

The EU imposed a moving price cap on Russian crude at 15% below its average market price. That means roughly $47.60 per barrel at present, well below the $60 cap that the Group of Seven major economies have tried to impose since December 2022.

The cap, introduced in late 2022, restricts access to Western shipping and insurance services for oil sold above the threshold.

Together with U.S. restrictions, more than 440 so-called shadow fleet tankers transporting Russian oil face sanctions, including tankers Moscow needs to ship oil to its biggest buyers, China and India.

Despite the sanctions, Western shipowners have returned to the Russian oil market in 2025 as Urals prices have largely remained below the $60 per barrel cap since early April, stabilising tanker availability and exerting downward pressure on freight rates.

Greek shipping firms have been among the most active in resuming services.

Freight rates remain elevated compared to January 2025 levels, when shipping costs from Baltic ports to India ranged between $4.7 million and $4.9 million per voyage.

(Reporting by ReutersEditing by Mark Potter)