April 7 (Reuters) – Crude oil exports from Russia’s Sheskharis terminal in the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk were suspended after a massive drone attack and a fire, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
The terminal, which typically loads 700,000 barrels per day of crude, is Russia’s major oil outlet in the Black Sea. Its suspension will add to the strain on Russian infrastructure, which has been repeatedly attacked.
Russia’s major Baltic Ust-Luga port’s oil exports have also been suspended since last week after heavy drone strikes and fires, industry sources said.
Sources have told Reuters that Russia will be forced to cut its output as supplies build up and storage fills, when international demand for alternatives to Middle Eastern crude is high and it could be maximising the benefit to its economy of a surge in oil prices caused by the Iran war.
The two sources familiar with the situation could not be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. They said the port had yet to estimate the extent of the damage.
An attack on the Black Sea terminal early in March led to the suspension of loadings for five days.
Novorossiysk port loads Russian Urals and Kazakh KEBCO oil as well as sweet Siberian Light crude.
(Reporting by Reuters; editing by Barbara Lewis)
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