Belarus buys 80,000 mt of oil from Saudi Aramco: report

Belarus has purchased 80,000 mt (about 580,000 barrels) of crude from Saudi Aramco that is expected to be delivered to its Naftan refinery via the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda in May, Belneftekhim spokesman Alexander Tishchenko said Wednesday.

"The first shipment of oil was purchased from Saudi Aramco. This is 80,000 mt. We are expecting an oil tanker in the port of Klaipeda on May 11," Tishchenko said, according to the Belta news agency.

Belarus has not yet agreed on additional supplies from Saudi Arabia and will make a decision based on market conditions, he added.

The deal comes as Belarus continues to look for alternative supply options after a disagreement with Russia on crude supply terms for 2020. Belarus already received similar volumes from Norway and Azerbaijan.

Earlier this week, the Aframax Ionic Astrapi loaded a cargo of Saudi Arab Light from Sidi Kerir in Egypt and is on its way to Klaipeda, according to data from Platts trade flow software Flow. The shipment is expected to arrive in Klaipeda on May 11, and is currently in the Mediterranean Sea.

The bulk of Saudi oil bound for Europe is exported from Sidi Kerir having been moved to the port via the SUMED pipeline, while the rest comes directly from Saudi oil terminals, chiefly Ras Tanura.

Saudi ramped up its crude production this month by almost a third after launching an oil price war in early March, significantly boosting its exports to all regions, particularly Europe and the US.

This shipments shows its market share strategy in Europe is working, with the kingdom expanding its lists of customers.

Russian deliveries

Belarusian refineries will also receive 1.13 million mt, or 267,190 b/d, of oil from Russia in May.

In April, Belarus received 2 million mt of crude as planned, which is the volume necessary for the optimal run of Belarusian refineries.

"Of this, 1.56 million mt are Russian deliveries by pipe and rail. The rest is tanker deliveries and own production," Tishchenko said.

Russia is due to release crude and condensate output and export statistics, including details of crude deliveries to Belarus in April, on Saturday.

Russian crude deliveries to Belarus have been disrupted since the start of 2020 due to a dispute over crude supply terms. Belarus complained that its revenues from oil customs duty would fall significantly in 2020 as a result of changes to Russian taxation. After months of negotiations, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that Russia had agreed to compensate in full for the expected oil duty losses this year. Russian media previously reported that Russian producers may offer a $10.7/mt discount on global prices for shipments to Belarus.