Oil prices will remain high globally for a long time in view of the partial restriction of Russian hydrocarbons import by EU countries, President of Italy-based Nomisma Energia consultancy Davide Tabarelli told TASS on Wednesday.
"I believe oil prices will stay high for a rather long time and may grow again. This creates difficulties for the entire world. Then, oil will not be enough on the market; Saudi Arabia does not intend to ramp up production significantly and production growth in the US is also slow. Investments in the buildup of production facilities were small in recent years," the expert said, commenting on the decision of the EU summit to impose the partial embargo on Russian oil.
Although the ban on import of Russian oil products will come into force in eight months, such time is not enough to ensure their substitution, Tabarelli said. Russian oil already offered with a discount will enjoy demand in Asia, the expert said. According to his estimate, the demand is returning to the pre-pandemic level in 2019: 100 mln barrels of oil per day globally. Europe is consuming 10 mln barrels of oil per day, with three million barrels daily coming from Russia.
The ban on Russian oil import will cover deliveries by tankers and will not apply to the Druzhba oil pipeline.
