Slovakia says Ukraine war, sanctions on Russian crude may cause cuts in fuel exports

The European Commission said that it does not see any impact yet on bloc’s oil supplies

Reading Time:1 minute

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a cabinet meeting chaired by UK prime minister, Keir Starmer on July 19. Starmer announced a crackdown on Russia’s shadow fleet of oil tankers used to skirt sanctions. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 4:01am, 24 Jul 2024Updated: 5:27am, 24 Jul 2024

Slovakia said it could be forced to cut fuel exports to neighbouring countries – including Ukraine – if the war-ravaged nation maintains sanctions that have cut the flow of piped crude from Russia.

Oil supplies to Slovakia and Hungary from Moscow-based producer Lukoil PJSC were suspended last week following a decision by the Ukrainian government to impose stricter sanctions on the company.

Despite 2½ years of war, Russian oil has continued to flow into the two central European countries via a pipeline that crosses Ukraine. However, Kyiv’s recent measures effectively barred Lukoil from using Ukraine as a transit route any more – even if other producers are still allowed to send barrels through.

But Slovakia’s economy ministry warned on Thursday a lack of Russian crude for a sustained period might force it to scale back exports of fuels.

“The energy security of Slovakia is not threatened in the immediate future,” the ministry said. However, “if this issue is not actively addressed, it could lead to restrictions on commercial supplies of petroleum products not only in Slovakia but also in the countries to which these oil products are exported [Czech Republic, Ukraine].”