Shell defends buying cut-price Russian oil after Ukraine outrage Business News

Shell has defended its decision to buy crude oil from Russia at a discount this week, in the first such trade since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine.

The company was among a number of oil giants to announce plans to sever ties with Moscow this week – Shell set to sell its stake in all joint ventures with Russian state energy company Gazprom and end its involvement in the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which was shut down by Germany.

But on Friday it was reported that Shell had purchased nearly 725,000 barrels of Russia’s flagship crude oil from trader Trafigura, at a bargain price of $28.50 a barrel below the price of the global benchmark, Brent crude. .

Shell confirmed it bought a shipment of crude on Friday, but said it acted to avoid disruption to consumers and insisted there was no alternative supply of crude that would have reached Europe in time.

But Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba reacted furiously, writing on Twitter: “I was told that Shell quietly bought Russian oil yesterday. A question to Shell: doesn’t Russian oil smell [of] Ukrainian blood for you?

“I call on all conscious people around the world to demand that multinational companies cut all trade ties with Russia.”

In a statement on Saturday evening, Shell said it was “appalled by the war in Ukraine”, calling the decision to buy the cargo “difficult”.