BENGALURU, India—Europe will no longer set the reference price for Russia’s flagship Urals crude, Igor Sechin, the CEO of Russia’s oil major Rosneft said on Monday, now Asia has emerged as the largest buyer of Russian oil since the West placed it under sanctions.
Around 70 percent of January-loading cargoes of Russian Urals oil is destined to India, according to traders’ preliminary data and Reuters calculations. The country has been a leading buyer of the Russian grade for several months, filling the void left by European buyers.