Russia loses its top position as China's oil supplier in November – intelligence
In November, Russia lost its position as the largest supplier of oil to China, overtaken by Saudi Arabia, Oman and Angola.
According to Ukrinform, the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine stated this on its website.
According to intelligence data, 123 tankers involved in the export of oil and petroleum products departed from Russian ports in November 2025, which is 17 fewer than in October.
Of these, 92 vessels belong to the core of Russia's shadow fleet; 77 of them are under sanctions and 15 are not. Another 31 vessels do not belong to this core; 10 of them are sanctioned and 21 are not, including seven new ones.
Russia's oil exports fell to 14 million tonnes (101,8 million barrels), a decrease of 2 million tonnes compared with the previous month.
The largest drops were recorded in supplies to India, China and Turkey – their combined decline reached 4,6 million tonnes. Supplies in other directions also fell by 0,7 million tonnes.
The year 2025 has become the first since the start of the war when Russian oil production and refining show a consistent decline. The Russian budget is missing at least $37 billion in oil and gas revenues, while Russian oil companies and the energy sector are losing tens of billions more.
The first month of U.S. and EU sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil led to a significant reduction in China's imports of Russian oil. From October 23 to November 21, supplies fell from 41,7 million to 37,2 million barrels (-11%). Average daily imports decreased from 1,39 million to 1,24 million barrels, and Russia's share in China's crude imports dropped from 14,7% to 11,2%.
For December, Rosneft and Lukoil reported only three shipments each to China, indicating a sharp contraction of their presence in this key Asian market.
China quickly compensated for the shortfall with supplies from Middle Eastern and African suppliers, including Saudi Arabia, Oman and Angola. Within a month, these countries pushed Russia out of the top supplier position, relegating it to second place.
As Ukrinform reported, since the start of the full-scale invasion, Russia has created a shadow fleet of more than 1,240 tankers to circumvent Western sanctions and continue selling oil.
Photo: Stefan Sauer/dpa/picture alliance