EU increases imports of Russian oil through Azeri back door

The EU is now the largest buyer of seaborne oil products from the STAR refinery, located in western Turkey. 

During the first three months of 2024, the EU imported over 1.2 million tonnes of oil products from STAR, over 75 percent of the refinery’s seaborne exports. This is up from 40 percent during the same period in 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. 

The vast majority of STAR products imported by the EU this year have likely been made from Russian oil. 

During Q1 2024, over 90 percent of the crude oil from which STAR made products like jet fuel, petroleum, and diesel came from Russia, according to Global Witness’ analysis of Kpler data. 

During this period, STAR imported an estimated $1.2 billion worth of Russian oil, compared with $500 million during Q1 2022. 

STAR is held jointly by the government of Azerbaijan and the oil giant SOCAR, which is owned by the government and upon which the petrostate heavily relies.  

Azerbaijan will host this year’s UN climate conference. Its organisers include multiple representatives working for either SOCAR or the country’s energy ministry, including Elnur Soltanov, who is both a deputy energy minister and CEO of the climate conference.