Belarus buys first oil from Saudi Arabia -refiner Belneftekhim

Belarus, which has long relied on Russian oil, has purchased its first crude from Saudi Arabia, according to state refiner Belneftekhim.

It has bought 80,000 tonnes of Arab Light crude oil from Saudi Aramco for delivery to the port of Klaipeda in May, Belneftekhim told Reuters on Wednesday.

“It’s our first tanker (with Arab oil),” a Belneftekhim representative told Reuters.

Further cooperation with Saudi Aramco will depend on the “market situation”, he said.

The tanker Ionic Astrapi loaded crude at Sidi Kerir on April 27 and is expected to arrive at Klaipeda on May 11, according to shipping data on the Refinitiv Eikon terminal.

The oil will be delivered to refineries by rail.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Andrei Makhovsky in Minsk and Olga Yagova in Moscow; editing by Jason Neely)