Russian Urals Hit $60/bbl Price Cap: Platts

The Russia's Urals crude price has hit $60/bbl for the first time since the G7 introduced the price cap on Russian seaborne crude exports in December according to data from S&P Commodity Insights.

• Platts assessed Urals on a FOB Primorsk basis at $60.32/bbl on July 11, the highest level since mid-November 2022.
• Argus assessed Russian Urals from the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk at $59.98/bbl on Tuesday.
• Urals values have been lifted along with other medium sour crude grades after Saudi Arabia and Russia pledged to slash their crude output by 1mbpd and exports by 500kbpd respectively in August. An ongoing impasse between Turkey and Iraq blocking some 450kbpd of sour Kurdish crude flow via Ceyhan is supporting sour crude values.
• The price cap targets the provision of shipping insurance and other maritime services for cargoes of Russian crude acquired FOB values over $60/bbl.
• Russian crude exports are starting to show signs of weakening. Seaborne crude exports fell 39% on the week to 2.48mbpd during the week ending 7 July, the slowest rate of the year, according to tanker tracking data from S&P Global Commodities.
• "Tighter supply from OPEC+ cuts, as well as higher domestic refinery run rates, have helped to push differentials up," one European oil trader said.
• "Demand remains strong from Indian buyers but there is a shorter Urals [export] program which means there is more competition," he added.