Russia's April oil and gas revenues will be almost double that of the same month last year, with only a slight drop recorded when compared to March 2024, Reuters reported on April 24.
Calculations by the news agency put the total revenue at 1.292 trillion rubles ($14 billion), up from 648 billion rubles ($7 billion) in April 2023.
This is slightly down from the 1.308 trillion rubles ($14.1 billion) generated in March.
The figures demonstrate that Western sanctions targeting Moscow's oil and gas industries have not been as effective as hoped. Western leaders are looking at ways to restrict how much money the Kremlin can generate, much of which goes into funding Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The EU, the U.S., and the Group of Seven (G7) countries imposed a $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian seaborne oil in December 2022 as part of the effort to cut Moscow's fossil fuels revenue.
While initially successful, Russia eventually managed to largely dodge the effects by using a "shadow fleet" of uninsured tankers. Kyiv's partners have been intensifying their efforts to enforce the cap.
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said on April 22 that the EU's upcoming 14th sanctions package must curb Russia's ability to circumvent oil sanctions through its shadow fleet of tankers.
The European bloc has already adopted 13 packages in response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, aiming to undermine Moscow's economic output and the ability to sustain the war.
Earlier this month, EU Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis said that the 14th package is in the works and will likely include measures aimed at Russia's sanctions circumvention, namely when it comes to maritime oil trade.
Martin Fornusek
