Russia reduced the average daily oil production in April against the backdrop of Western sanctions by 8.7 percent compared to March, to 1.37 million tons. The fall is due to the refusal of European traders to buy oil from Russian state-owned companies, as well as a trend towards a decrease in refining within the country, Kommersant reports.

The Department of Energy in March stopped publishing data on oil production and refining. Production at the Sakhalin-1 project has been significantly reduced. The project operator Exxon Neftegas reduced production by almost 11 percent to 25.3 thousand tons per day. On April 26, production fell by almost 10 percent, and on April 27, Exxon Neftegas declared force majeure.

The company explained this decision by obstacles to fulfilling its obligations under agreements and conducting operations at the required level of international standards. ExxonMobil, after Russia launched a special operation on the territory of Ukraine, promised to gradually withdraw from the project and stop investing in Russia.

Andrey Polishchuk of Raiffeisenbank explained that production is declining due to European consumers turning away from Russian oil, and redirecting volumes will take time and better offers. At the same time, oil exports from Russia increased by 8.8 percent compared to March due to a reduction in refining.