logo
Huge tanker with Russian ESPO oil waits near China as demand sags

Huge tanker with Russian ESPO oil waits near China as demand sags

Reuters30-05-2025
MOSCOW, May 30 (Reuters) - The Big Star, a huge tanker with 2.1 million barrels of Russia's ESPO Blend oil onboard, has been waiting near China in a potential sign of weaker demand for the crude in the region, LSEG data showed and two traders said on Friday.
Many state oil companies in China are wary of potential secondary sanctions from the United States if they buy the sanctions-hit Russian oil, traders said.
China's seaborne oil imports from Russia dropped to the lowest in 26 months in February, with commodity analysts Kpler assessing arrivals at 970,000 barrels per day.
Since then, they have recovered as demand from private "teapot" refiners picked up. But obstacles to Russia's oil trade remain.
The Big Star - a so-called very large crude carrier (VLCC) - loaded a total of 2.1 million barrels of ESPO blend from three smaller Aframax tankers, Leftkada, Kai Fu and Centurion I, between May 12 and May 17 near Russia's Far East port of Zarubino, LSEG and Kpler data showed, and headed towards Jieyang in China's southern Guangdong province before stopping.
One of the traders suggested the three cargoes were placed too late for sale and failed to attract buyers. Oil in Asian markets normally sells one and a half months prior to loading.
The three cargoes loaded from Kozmino port in late April and early in May, prior to the ship-to-ship transfer to the Big Star, LSEG data showed.
It is not common for ESPO tankers to be involved in ship-to-ship transfers given the proximity of Russia's Kozmino port to China, and it is also rare for the grade to be held in floating storage, the traders said.
After May 23, the vessel briefly lost a ship-tracking signal and then emerged near the Senkaku Islands, not far from Taiwan, on May 25, but has remained anchored since, according to LSEG data.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Attempt to unseat 24 ‘pro-China' opposition politicians in Taiwan appears to fail
Attempt to unseat 24 ‘pro-China' opposition politicians in Taiwan appears to fail

The Guardian

time35 minutes ago

  • The Guardian

Attempt to unseat 24 ‘pro-China' opposition politicians in Taiwan appears to fail

An unprecedented attempt in Taiwan to unseat 24 'pro-China' opposition politicians and give a parliamentary majority to the ruling party appears to have failed, with early results indicating voters in every seat had rejected the notion. Polls opened on Saturday morning for the first 24 of 31 targeted seats, with voters asked to agree or disagree with a proposal to recall the local legislator and hold a byelection. Polls closed at 4pm local time and within a couple of hours the early results emerged. By 7pm the central election commission said all had failed to pass, reported CNA, the government media outlet. Under the recall laws, for a seat to be vacated the number of voters in favour must be at least 25% of the electorate and outnumber the votes against. All 24 seats, as well as seven yet to hold a recall vote, are held by the opposition Kuomintang (KMT), which together with a smaller party has controlled the majority of Taiwan's parliament since the election last year, when Lai Ching-te won the presidency for the Democratic Progressive party (DPP), a pro-sovereignty party that has vowed to push back against China's aggression. The opposition allies used their votes to block DPP bills including defence budgets, freeze court appointments, and propose bills that critics said would weaken Taiwan's defences. The obstructions sparked mass protests from which the recall movement was born. The KMT are likely to be emboldened by their resounding victory on Saturday. A flipping of just six KMT seats could free up president Lai Ching-te and the DPP's agenda, but would also likely see increased hostility from China's ruling Communist party, which despises Lai and his party as 'separatists' for opposing its plan to annex Taiwan. There are a total of 113 seats in the legislature. Seven seats are still to vote on their recall motions in coming weeks, but Saturday's losses will put the pressure on the campaigners to get six to vote 'agree'. William Yang, a senior north asia analyst for the International Crisis Group, said the recall campaign had deepened divisions in Taiwan. 'All sides, including all political parties in Taiwan, will need to seriously reflect on the process of this recall campaign and think about how they may be able to find common ground on issues that are key to Taiwan's security and prosperity,' he said. Yang said it also raised questions about the DPP using the threat posed by China in election campaigning, 'at least at a local level'. 'China may view Saturday's result as a sign that more Taiwanese people are not in favour of the 'China threat' rhetoric promoted by [Lai and the DPP], and this may make them feel like peaceful unification remains a viable option for them to resolve the ultimate 'Taiwan question',' Yang said. 'However, this doesn't also mean that Beijing would dial down the level of military and political pressure that they are imposing on Taiwan.' The unprecedented vote has fired up the island's population, just 18 months after a national election. Large rallies were held in Taipei on the eve of the vote, with tens of thousands turning out to support the two sides. The pro-recall campaign was driven by civil society groups and activists, but since endorsed by the DPP. They had aimed to oust as many as 31 KMT legislators who, they say, are pro-China actors who have risked Taiwan's national security. The KMT denies the accusations. They, like the DPP, oppose annexation by the Communist party of China (CCP), but say the best way to protect the status quo is through friendlier ties with Beijing. The party and its supporters have labelled the recall campaign an anti-democratic power-grab by people who won't accept the results of last year's election. Retaliatory campaigns against DPP seats by the KMT all failed, with dozens of officials arrested over allegedly faking signatures. Senior KMT figures, like party chair Eric Chu, have accused Lai of being a 'dictator' who is 'more communist than the communists, more fascist than the fascists' – comments that were rejected by Lai and criticised by European and Israeli diplomats. Beijing has also denounced the recall campaign. The Taiwan affairs office accused Lai of being a dictator and seeking to achieve 'one-party dominance'. Taiwan's mainland affairs council this week said it was 'evident and clear' that the CCP was trying to interfere in Taiwan's democratic process.

Vauxhall owner risks exclusion from Labour electric car scheme
Vauxhall owner risks exclusion from Labour electric car scheme

Telegraph

time35 minutes ago

  • Telegraph

Vauxhall owner risks exclusion from Labour electric car scheme

The owner of Vauxhall risks being excluded from Labour's electric vehicle (EV) grant scheme over its reliance on Polish factories. Stellantis, which owns brands including Peugeot, Citroën and Fiat, is among several car manufacturers scrambling to demonstrate their eco-credentials in a bid to qualify for new government subsidies. But it is understood some of the company's cars may miss out on £3,750 grants offered by ministers because they are made in Poland and risk falling foul of net zero rules. Under the scheme, vehicles put forward by manufacturers will be scored based on how green their production processes are. Those with the highest scores risk being excluded or only receiving a smaller payment of £1,500. Carmakers must also prove they are signed up to 'science-based targets' to cut their carbon emissions, in line with net zero targets. Ministers have already warned that Chinese-made cars are likely to be blocked from receiving grants for these reasons. China is the world's biggest carbon dioxide emitter, largely because of its huge consumption of coal for power generation. But car industry insiders have warned the scheme's rules may also create a headache for Western manufacturers with operations in Poland because of the European country's similarly high dependence on coal. Like China, roughly 60pc of Poland's electricity is generated by burning the fuel. Both countries generate about 7.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide per capita overall, according to the International Energy Agency. The Government's grant scheme will assess carmakers on where they assemble EVs as well as where their EV batteries are produced. A 30pc weighting will be given to the former and a 70pc weighting to the latter, according to a briefing seen by The Telegraph. It means some carmakers – including Stellantis – may be penalised for their dependence on Poland, which has attracted huge investment from the car industry and is also Europe's biggest supplier of batteries. Electric models made by Stellantis at its plant in Tychy, in southern Poland, include the Jeep Avenger, Fiat 600e, Alfa Romeo Junior Elettrica and the Abarth 600e. Until earlier this year, the company also made the Leapmotor T03 there through a joint venture. It is not clear where Stellantis sources batteries for the cars made in Tychy but in addition to using its own battery joint venture in France, the company is understood to rely on a supplier based in China as well. Several other major car companies also rely on China for supplies, as well as on an LG Energy Solutions plant based in Wrocław, Poland, which is Europe's biggest battery factory. Ginny Buckley, chief executive of an electric car advice service, said: 'Poland may be Europe's EV battery powerhouse – second only to China globally – but its coal-heavy energy mix could mean its batteries will be excluded from the new electric car grants, as under the Government's strict environmental criteria only EVs with low-carbon supply chains qualify. 'It's a move that risks punishing carmakers working to establish European supply chains and limiting consumer choice.' Uncertainty about whether certain cars will qualify for Britain's EV grant scheme has prompted complaints from car industry executives, who say it has made it harder to plan their marketing strategies for August and September. Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders, warned this week that manufacturers had been left trying to peer through 'a fog'. Meanwhile, Chinese manufacturers such as BYD have already started slashing their UK car prices, in a defensive measure to compensate for their exclusion. Dan Caesar, chief executive of campaign group Electric Vehicles UK, said: 'Some [carmakers] know that they're unlikely to be eligible and are proactively discounting ahead of time, while those that are applying will not be able to act as immediately.' A Whitehall source acknowledged the grant scheme rules could block some cars made by Western manufacturers but cautioned that officials could not say for certain until manufacturers applied to join the scheme. 'We want as many models as possible to qualify for these grants, but the scheme has been intentionally designed to incentivise the greenest possible manufacturing,' they said. 'There will be ways that companies that manufacture in different places, and through different means, can work with us to ensure they are still included.' A Stellantis spokesman said: 'Stellantis welcomes the Government's support to increase the sales of more affordable electric vehicles. 'This is something that we have been asking for. We are making the necessary grant applications for customers of our electric vehicles and are confident that a wide range of these, manufactured in our plants in the UK and Western Europe, will be eligible.'

Hong Kong issues arrest warrants for 19 activists based overseas
Hong Kong issues arrest warrants for 19 activists based overseas

The Guardian

time2 hours ago

  • The Guardian

Hong Kong issues arrest warrants for 19 activists based overseas

Hong Kong's national security police have issued arrest warrants for 19 activists based overseas, accusing them of subversion under a stringent national security law, marking the largest such tally yet. They are accused of organising or participating in the Hong Kong Parliament, a pro-democracy group that authorities in the Asian financial hub say intended to subvert state power, under the law Beijing imposed in 2020 after months of pro-democracy protests in 2019. The activists are accused of having launched a referendum or run as candidates in the unofficial Hong Kong Parliament group, which authorities say aims to achieve self-determination and draft a Hong Kong constitution. Police said the organisation sought to overthrow the governments of China and Hong Kong by unlawful means, and that further arrests may follow. Among those named are the businessman Elmer Yuen, the commentator Victor Ho, and the activists Johnny Fok and Tony Choi. Four of them are subject to previous arrest warrants, each carrying a reward of 1m Hong Kong dollars (£95,000). Among the remaining 15, for each of whom police are offering a reward of 200,000 Hong Kong dollars, are those said to have organised or run in the election and been sworn in as its councillors. Feng Chongyi, a China studies professor at the University of Technology Sydney who was also listed, decried the bounty against him as 'ridiculous'. 'They've got the power, they've got the influence overseas, they want to control everything even overseas,' he told the Sydney Morning Herald. The UK's foreign and home secretaries condemned the move in a joint statement, calling the arrests 'another example of transnational repression' and saying it damages Hong Kong's international reputation. '[The UK] will not tolerate attempts by foreign governments to coerce, intimidate, harass or harm their critics overseas,' they said in a statement on Friday. In response, the Chinese embassy in the UK said the British government's remarks 'constitute a gross interference' in China's internal affairs and the rule of law in Hong Kong. 'China urges the UK to abandon its colonial mentality, stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs … stop shielding criminals,' it said. Australia's foreign minister, Penny Wong, also strongly objected to the arrest warrants. 'Freedom of expression and assembly are essential to our democracy,' she said on X. 'We have consistently expressed our strong objections to China and Hong Kong on the broad and extraterritorial application of Hong Kong's national security legislation, and we will continue to do so.' The former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997 with the guarantee of a high degree of autonomy, including freedom of speech, under a 'one country, two systems' formula. Critics of the national security law say government are using it to stifle dissent. Chinese and Hong Kong authorities have repeatedly said the law was vital to restore stability after the city was rocked for months by sometimes violent anti-government and anti-China protests in 2019. Police reiterated that national security offences were serious crimes with extraterritorial reach and urged the wanted individuals to return to Hong Kong and surrender. 'If offenders voluntarily give up continuing to violate the crime, turn themselves in, truthfully confess their crimes, or provide key information that helps solve other cases, they may be eligible for reduced punishment,' they said in a statement. Police also said that aiding, abetting, or funding others to participate in the Hong Kong Parliament group could be a criminal offence.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store