The European Union is managing to replace shipments of diesel from Russia — by far the bloc’s top external supplier before a ban on seaborne imports started in February.
The success will be a relief to governments across the continent because Russia had previously often made up more than half the shipments delivered into the EU and UK. Failure to find alternatives would threaten the availability of a fuel used in everything from industry to freight to road transportation.
Instead, deliveries from other nations have soared. Total arrivals of diesel and gasoil — a very similar fuel — are expected to surge to a four-month high of about 1.25 million barrels a day in May, according to data compiled by Bloomberg from shipping analytics firm Vortexa Ltd.
Excluding a period just before the imports ban began — when countries were stocking up in readiness for the ban — May’s flows are in line with average shipments across 2022, and up year-on-year.
Deliveries from the Middle East and the US are booming. Flows from Saudi Arabia are expected to reach a new high of about 324,000 barrels a day, while cargoes from the US are set to be the highest since August 2020.
Shipments from Asia are set to decline this month due to lower flows from China and Singapore, although diesel-type cargoes from India are expected to climb.