A Russian diesel shipment is heading for the United States for the first time since Washington banned imports of Russian oil products in 2022, according to ship-tracking data reported by Reuters on Friday. The cargo is the first identified shipment under a diesel supply agreement announced by President Donald Trump earlier this month, but its final destination remains unconfirmed.
The Malta-flagged tanker Agioi Fanendes loaded 40,000 metric tons of ultra-low-sulphur diesel at Primorsk, Russia’s Baltic Sea oil port, on October 22, LSEG ship-tracking data showed. The vessel is expected to arrive in the United States on November 7, four days after the November 3 midterm elections.
FAKTA: Russian diesel shipment at a glance
- Vessel: Agioi Fanendes, Malta-flagged, loaded at Primorsk on October 22
- Cargo: 40,000 metric tons of ultra-low-sulphur diesel, about 300,000 barrels
- Expected arrival: November 7 in the United States, according to LSEG data
- Deal announced: October 9 — 300,000 tons immediately, 500,000 tons in November, 1 million tons “immediately thereafter”
- Sanctions relief: US Treasury General License 135, issued October 9, temporarily authorises Russian-diesel transactions
- What is not confirmed: the buyer, the seller and the final discharge port
Russian diesel shipment: what is confirmed and what is not
Reuters reported the shipment as the first Russian diesel bound for the United States under the agreement between Moscow and Washington, and the first cargo imported by the United States since former President Joe Biden announced a ban on US imports of Russian oil and petroleum products in 2022. Maritime analyst Kpler, cited by the Associated Press, described it differently, as the first Russian diesel delivery since July 2023. Neither account names the vessel’s last previous delivery in detail, and the two descriptions are not reconciled in the reporting so far.
The destination is also not settled. The Wall Street Journal reported that the tanker intermittently signalled it was headed for the United States, updating its destination to New York before changing it to “for orders”, a designation typically indicating a vessel with no confirmed final discharge port. The ship’s manager, Eastern Mediterranean Maritime, said the discharging port was not confirmed yet. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Friday that a first tanker under the arrangement had departed and said further shipments would follow at a steady pace, but he did not specify whether it was bound for the US market.
Why the Russian diesel shipment was agreed
Trump announced the deal on October 9 as part of his efforts to bring down soaring diesel prices ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. Under the agreement, Russia would immediately export 300,000 metric tons, or 2.25 million barrels, to the United States and global markets, followed by 500,000 tons in November and 1 million tons “immediately thereafter”. The deal also involved Russia lifting its own restrictions on diesel exports.
The sanctions relief is set out in General License 135, issued on October 9 by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which temporarily authorises Russian-diesel transactions otherwise prohibited under two sanctions programmes. Reuters also reported that Trump waived parts of a new US sanctions law against Russia and threatened Europe with a US diesel export ban unless countries released more fuel from their emergency reserves to help ease prices.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak has said additional shipments are planned as Russian and US companies finalise delivery contracts. Shipping data cited by Reuters and Kpler also showed Russian diesel cargoes resuming voyages to their traditional destinations after Moscow lifted its own ban, with at least two tankers signalling trips to Turkey and Brazil. Since the European Union imposed a full embargo on imports of Russian oil products in February 2023, Russia has exported diesel mainly to Turkey and Brazil, as well as to African countries, and supplies Central Asia by rail.
Russian diesel shipment: scale and market impact
At roughly 300,000 barrels, the cargo represents about 7 per cent of the approximately 4 million barrels of diesel consumed by the US economy each day, according to the Associated Press. Energy policy experts cited by the news agency said the import agreement was unlikely to substantially reduce fuel prices.
The Wall Street Journal reported that US diesel prices averaged $6.32 a gallon on Friday, up from $3.63 a year ago. The scheduled arrival on November 7 falls after Election Day, so the shipment itself will not reach US buyers before voters go to the polls.
Reaction to the Russian diesel shipment
The agreement has drawn criticism from Ukraine, which has urged its partners to tighten restrictions on Russian energy revenue. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the US decision “a weak decision by strong partners”, the Associated Press reported.
Matthias Matthijs, a senior fellow for Europe at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the diesel deal showed that Washington’s Russia policy was now driven by high prices at the pump before the November 3 midterm elections, rather than by any shared trans-Atlantic strategy. Jefferies chief European economist Mohit Kumar wrote in an October 12 research note, quoted by CNBC, that Trump was exploring all avenues to bring down diesel prices before the midterms.
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