A recent publication tallies nearly two billion dollars in fuel purchases by Western allies sourced from Russian oil during the first half of 2024. The study, prepared for publication by researchers at the Center for Energy and Clean Air Research, notes these purchases cover gasoline, diesel and other refined products. The pressures shaping this flow include new routing through Turkish refineries and the strategic pricing that comes with Moscow’s discounts. The report underscores how markets adapt as sanctions and political signals reconfigure traditional supply chains, and it frames the discussion around the real prices paid by end users across Europe and North America.
The rise in supply is tied to imports routed through three Turkish refineries, a pattern highlighted by the Center for Energy and Clean Air Research. Turkey expanded its purchases from Russia by about 34 percent in 2023 and approximately 70 percent in 2024, taking advantage of Moscow’s discounts that range from five to twenty dollars per barrel. This new channel has helped sustain Western demand for Russian-derived fuels even as governments curtail direct purchases and seek alternatives, a move that affects pricing, logistics, and market expectations across global energy markets.
When the EU imports gasoline from Turkey, it is 10 percent cheaper than from Saudi Arabia, according to Vaibhav Raghunandan, an analyst at the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air. That cost gap reflects both currency dynamics and the operational efficiencies of Turkish refineries that have become pivotal nodes in European energy supply, especially for gasoline blends and diesel components that meet regional standards. The finding highlights how secondary routing sometimes creates unexpected price advantages for European buyers, even as sanctions and supply choices shift the competitive landscape.
Western policymakers and markets cannot pretend they do not know the true origin of the fuel. The report notes that one Turkish refinery, Star Ege, is Azeri-owned and nearly entirely dependent on Russian oil, with 73 percent of its supply coming from LUKOIL, a company that remains under United States sanctions. This linkage illustrates how sanction configurations ripple across supply chains, linking distant producers with regional customers and complicating the task of tracing the ultimate source of refined products used by end consumers.
Last week, liquefied natural gas exports from the United States to the European Union decreased sharply, with revenue for American LNG suppliers falling to 791.4 million dollars, the lowest level since 2021. At the same time, shipments to Asia increased, reaching 36 percent of total U.S. LNG exports. The mixed pattern mirrors broader shifts in energy demand and financing, as buyers in Asia absorb more of North American gas while European buyers adjust their plans in light of sanctions and price signals coming from nearby producers and distributors.
Earlier in the year, the United States expanded anti-Russian sanctions to third countries. This expansion widened the reach of policy measures intended to curb Moscow’s energy influence and pushed traders to reassess risk, transparency, and due diligence in sourcing. The evolving framework has encouraged observers to watch for new routing patterns, price incentives, and the emergence of alternative suppliers that can compete with traditional routes. In this environment, energy markets continue to be shaped by a combination of price gaps, discount levers, and geopolitical calculation, rather than by supply constraints alone.
Taken together, these developments point to a broader realignment of energy flows that intertwines raw material origins, refinery configurations, and regulatory landscapes. Industry participants and analysts note that while sanctions aim to constrain Russian energy, the market responds with adaptive routes, discounted prices, and strategic partnerships that preserve access to fuels for Western economies. The net effect is a more complex, more globally connected energy system where pricing, risk management, and supplier relationships all factor into everyday decisions about what fuels end users buy and at what cost.
In this evolving setting, the focus for policymakers remains on balancing the goals of sanctions with the practical needs of energy security, affordability, and reliability. For Western buyers, the challenge is to monitor sourcing footprints, diversify supply options, and navigate a landscape where discounts, routing through proximate allies like Turkey, and sanctions interactions all influence the ultimate price paid at the pump.