Russia Makes More Money on Fossil Fuels Than One Year Ago

Despite the volume and value of Russian fossil fuel exports decreasing since the invasion of Ukraine in late February, Russia was still making around 40 percent more money off its exports of oil, gas and coal in May 2022 than it did one year earlier. This is due to the fossil fuel prices on the world market that inflated even before the start of the war on Ukraine.

As seen in data by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air, reductions in exports and discounts the country is currently giving on its fossil fuels are costing the country some. Prices that are that much higher than one year ago, however, mean that Russia is still fetching a fair sum on its fossil fuel exports overall. Crude oil prices, for example, had already reached pre-pandemic levels by mid-2021.

The report further shows that shipments headed for the EU decreased most, with daily export values around $114 million lower in May than they had been in February-March. Countries most successful in reducing their dependency included Poland, Spain, Lithuania and Italy. Daily export values for the U.S. decreased by $33 million over the same time period, while those for India rose by $65 million, resulting in overall daily revenues of Russian fossil fuel exports that were around $100 million lower in May than they had been two to three months earlier.