JAKARTA – S&P Global Oil Tracker has recorded the presence of an Indonesian-flagged tanker carrying 2 million barrels of Russian crude oil as of 25 April 2025.

The finding has attracted attention since Indonesia is not listed as an official export destination for Russian oil, according to the same report released on 8 May 2025.

The report places Indonesia alongside countries such as India and Azerbaijan, which also each received 2 million barrels of Russian oil, according to Bloomberg on Wednesday (28/5).

At the top of the list of shipping carriers is Seychelles with 21 million barrels, followed by Greece (17 million barrels), the United Arab Emirates (16 million barrels), and the Marshall Islands (8 million barrels).

However, Indonesia is absent from the list of destination countries. Nations like India (1.64 million bpd), China (1.11 million bpd), and Turkey (0.27 million bpd) dominate as the top importers of Russian seaborne crude.

Indonesia's absence from this list suggests the possibility of imports being realised via alternative mechanisms or still being in the transshipment stage.

Further confirmation came from Taufik Aditiyawarman, President Director of PT Kilang Pertamina Internasional (KPI), who stated that the Indonesian government had indeed reopened the policy on importing crude oil from Russia.

PT KPI has even conducted an open tender since May 2024 to procure crude oil, including from Russia.

“Including Russian crude. Several Russian crude shipments have come in. But they still have to comply with OPEC regulations and domestic refinery specifications,” said Taufik at the IPA Convex 2025 held at ICE BSD on 21 May 2025.

Taufik emphasised that the imported Russian crude would be directed straight to domestic refineries, not stored in storage facilities.

This scheme aims to increase absorption and production efficiency within the country without violating applicable tender regulations.

Meanwhile, Russia is currently under severe economic pressure due to the G7’s price cap sanctions—set at USD 60 per barrel—imposed since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

According to Trading Economics, the price of Russia’s Urals benchmark crude has dropped 14.73% since the start of 2025 to USD 55.6 per barrel, far below its peak of USD 117.65 in February 2013.

Furthermore, the International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that Russia’s oil export revenues fell to a nearly two-year low of USD 13.2 billion in April 2025, due to falling global prices and weak international demand.

Given the discounted prices and global supply pressure, Indonesia’s opportunity to import Russian oil becomes more strategic, especially to reduce domestic production costs.

However, many questions remain unanswered regarding the actual volume, transport mechanisms, and final destination of the Russian oil carried by the Indonesian tanker.

This could represent a short-term energy strategy amid volatile global geopolitical and economic conditions. (EF/ZH)