Turkey Maintains Russian Oil Imports in October

Turkey is set to maintain its imports of Russian Urals crude oil in October at around 280,000 barrels per day (bpd), unchanged from September, according to LSEG shipping data and market sources.

October exports to Turkey may even surpass September's volume as additional cargoes are confirmed later in the month, reflecting Turkey’s continued demand for Russian barrels, two sources involved in Russian oil trade said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has been increasing pressure on major Russian oil buyers, India and Turkey to curtail funding for Russia's war in Ukraine as he pushes for a ceasefire deal.

Turkey has become one of the largest buyers of Russian crude since 2022, when European buyers stopped purchases, ranking since then as the second biggest buyer after India among seaborne importers of Urals, Russia’s main export grade, LSEG data shows.

Ankara has not joined Western sanctions against Moscow.

Tupras, Turkey’s largest refiner, and SOCAR Turkey, a subsidiary of Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR, are major buyers of Russian oil in Turkey, LSEG data shows and traders say.

Tupras operates several refineries across Turkey, including facilities in Izmit, Izmir, Kirikkale and Batman. The STAR refinery, which processes medium and heavy sour grades, runs mainly on Urals. Russia's Lukoil supplies the grade to STAR under a term agreement.

Turkey’s refiners have continued to purchase Urals due to its competitive pricing compared with other grades available in the Mediterranean market, traders said.

Tupras and SOCAR Turkey don't comment on their oil purchases.

Despite Western efforts to cap Russian oil prices and restrict shipping and insurance services, Urals crude continues to flow to non-sanctioning countries, often via alternative logistics and payment arrangements.

The steady flow of Russian oil to Turkey highlights the challenges faced by Western nations in curbing Moscow’s energy revenues in a complex global oil market.

(Reuters)