Australia could import more than 3 million tons of oil products from Russia through a sanctions loophole

Australia could import more than 3 million tons of petroleum products from Russia through intermediaries starting in 2023. This was reported by The Guardian with reference to data from the European Center for Energy and Clean Air Research (Crea).

According to the organization, millions of tons of Russian oil could have been sold through the port, which is partially owned by Australia's Macquarie Bank, and potentially sold to Australian companies.

The sanctions imposed by Australia allow purchases to be made through third countries, which, according to Crea's Europe analyst Vaibhav Raghunandan, indirectly supported the Kremlin's oil profits.

"This is a significant loophole exploited by Australian buyers who, while complying with the law, are undoubtedly violating ethics. This clearly undermines Australia's support for Ukraine. Not only does it allow Russian oil to continue to flow, but it also allows Australian companies to profit from it," he said .

Since January 2023, Australia has bought nearly a quarter of its refined oil imports from Singapore, which in turn received more than 22 million tons of refined oil products from Russia during that period, according to government data, according to an analysis of Kpler trade data by Australian chemical engineer Mark Corrigan and confirmed by Crea.

One third of these volumes came from the Jurong Port's universal terminal, which is partially owned by Macquarie Investment Fund. A spokesperson for the terminal said it has robust processes in place to ensure due diligence and full compliance with applicable laws and sanctions.

The terminal, partly owned by Macquarie, sold oil to companies such as Trafigura, which in August received $135 million in government aid for its South Australian smelters, and Vitol. Spokespeople for Vitol, Viva Energy and Trafigura said their companies were acting in full compliance with laws and regulations, including sanctions.

Foreign Secretary Penny Wong urges businesses to ensure their supply chains do not indirectly fund the Russian government.

• on September 18, Australia reduced the ceiling price for Russian oil from $60 to $47.6 per barrel and imposed sanctions on 95 more vessels of the so-called "shadow fleet" of Russia.