Russia Is a Top Oil and Gas Producer/Sanctions and Global Tensions Alter the Export Market for Russia

Russia plays a major role in the global energy market and is ranked among top producers of crude oil as well as gas. It is also a major producer of hydroelectric power and coal, and it has significant nuclear energy production technologies and capabilities (roughly 20% of its electricity generation is nuclear). At the same time, Russia suffers from a shortage advanced oil and gas technologies (and from aging infrastructure), is not attractive to international oil companies as a place to invest and faces sanctions from many major oil importing nations that might otherwise generate vast amounts of trade with Russia. Oil and gas exports are a vital part of the national economy.

Russia also must deal with harsh geographic and climate challenges while operating in its remote, frigid regions. Over time, market sanctions will have a significantly detrimental effect on Russia’s ability to invest in badly needed technology, infrastructure and discovery projects. Notably, in 2022 world energy giant ExxonMobil walked away from a $4 billion investment in a joint venture with Russian firms for long-term production on Russia’s Sakhalin Island—a huge field. During 2021, the EIA (Energy Information Administration) in the U.S. rated Russia as both the world’s third-largest producer and third-largest consumer of energy in total.

Renewables: Other than hydro power, investment in renewable electricity production is minimal, with wind and solar accounting for perhaps 1% of total generation. However, hydroelectric accounts for nearly 20%.

Natural Gas: Russia consumes only about two-thirds of the huge quantities of natural gas that it produces (roughly 26 quadrillion BTUs yearly, ranked at or near the top of all producing nations). Traditionally, it exported most of its excess gas production to European markets, but Russian-sponsored conflicts in Crimea and Ukraine have led many EU nations to seek other sources for the long term. (China will pick up some of this exported Russian gas.) Meanwhile, Russia has invested in some of the world’s most significant gas pipelines, directed at the European market. The country is also involved in the LNG (liquified natural gas) market. Important gas fields include the Yamal Peninsula. Russia is considered to contain the world’s largest natural gas reserves.

Oil: Russia ranks at or near the top in global crude oil production, in the 10 to 11 million barrels per day range. Important fields include the West Siberian Basin. Russia has a special relationship with OPEC, referred to as OPEC+. Under this relationship, the country often cooperates with formal OPEC members in following national production quotas that are proscribed by OPEC. A key Russian focus is improving production in the northern territories, with an eye on enhancing export revenues. It announced, in 2022, a major investment in a new Artic oil shipment terminal for this strategy. There is a reasonable level of refinery capacity in Russia, but a core focus is on the export of crude.

Pipelines: The Russian pipeline network, including the Druzhba Pipeline, delivers crude oil to refineries and export terminals. Gazprom, the state-owned gas company, operates an extensive pipeline infrastructure for natural gas distribution, including the Nord Stream and TurkStream pipelines. (The Nord Stream 2, an $11 billion expansion project aimed at doubling natural gas delivery capacity to parts of the EU, was halted by the German government in February 2023. Germany historically gets about one-half of its natural gas from Russia.) Other major pipelines include the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, carrying crude from neighboring Kazakhstan, plus Russian crude, to a Black Sea port for export. Elsewhere, the nation has a major gas transportation partnership with China-owned Sinopec.

Top Russian Oil and Gas Production Companies Include:

1. Gazprom (state-controlled)

2. Rosneft (publicly traded)

3. Lukoil (includes some publicly traded)

4. Surgutneftegas (a complex ownership structure that includes some traded stock)

5. Tatneft (includes some publicly traded stock)

Source: Plunkett Research, Ltd.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Become a Plunkett Research Online subscriber to gain unlimited access to our massive amount of vital industry data and market research.

✔ 100,000 Industry Statistics
✔ 500 Industries Analyzed for Market Size, Profits and Forecasts
✔ 150,000 Industry Executives Profiled
✔ 25,000 Companies Profiled, Ranked and Analyzed
✔ 1,000 Vital Trends Analyzed, totaling 1,000,000 words

Learn More

Russia Is a Top Oil and Gas Producer/Sanctions and Global Tensions Alter the Export Market for Russia, Business and Industry Trends Analysis

A Representative List of Organizations that Have Used our Research and Products:

How to access Plunkett Research data.

What data challenge can we help you solve today?

Take a Tour

Contact

Testimonials