Chinese state oil majors have suspended purchases of seaborne Russian oil after the United States imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Moscow’s two biggest oil companies, multiple trade sources said on Thursday.
The move comes as refiners in India, the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil, are set to cut their crude imports from Moscow, to comply with the U.S. sanctions imposed over the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine..
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday downplayed the impact of fresh U.S. sanctions on his country’s two biggest oil companies.A sharp drop in oil demand from Russia’s two largest customers will put a strain on Moscow’s oil revenues and force the world’s top importers to seek alternative supplies and push up global prices.
Chinese national oil companies PetroChina (601857.SS) Sinopec, CNOOC and Zhenhua Oil will refrain from dealing in seaborne Russian oil at least in the short-term due to concern over sanctions, the sources said.
Reports sauhe four companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
While China imports roughly 1.4 million barrels of Russian oil per day by sea, most of that is bought by independent refiners, including small operators known as teapots, although estimates of purchases by state refiners vary widely.
Vortexa Analytics pegged Russian oil purchases by Chinese state firms at under 250,000 bpd for the first nine months of 2025, while consultancy Energy Aspects put it at 500,000 bpd.
