Volume of Russian oil production 2010-2019, by region

The majority of Russia’s oil production is located in West Siberia. In 2019, 320.7 million metric tons were produced in that region, marking an increase from the previous year. Russia is one of the leading oil producing countries in the world, and in 2019, it produced over 11.5 million barrels per day. That output was only smaller than that of Saudi Arabia and that of the United States.

Oil as an important export commodity

With its vast reserves, Russia is one of the world largest exporters of crude oil, accounting for an 11.3 percent share of all crude oil exported globally, with only Saudi Arabia exporting more. Oil is among Russia’s top export commodities and is hugely important to its economy. In 2018, crude oil exports of the country amounted to a value of 129 billion U.S. dollars. This was an increase of approximately 36 billion U.S. dollars from the previous year.

Arctic frontier

Whilst West Siberia produced by the far the most oil at this time, the country’s Arctic zone holds potentially huge oil reserves. Despite Russia owning significant shares in the oil and gas resources under the Arctic shelf, that area has remained relatively untapped due to Western sanctions. However, Russia has ambitions to develop resources in this area, and in 2019, Russia’s largest oil producer Rosneft made plans to develop a cluster of oil fields there over the following five years.