Germany admits it mixes Russian oil with its Kazakh blend

Germany’s Ministry of Economy and Climate told a regional newspaper that the oil imported from Kazakhstan mixes with Russian oil, and that it was inevitable. Poland was concerned this scenario was the case. The sanctions have not been violated, but the oil from Russia continues to flow through Polish territory to our neighbor. This confirms the findings of our portal.

Germany, like Poland, abandoned oil supplies from Russia at the turn of 2022 and 2023. However, they import raw materials from Kazakhstan using the Friendship Oil Pipeline, which runs through Russian, Belarusian and Polish territories. BiznesAlert.pl has previously reported that tests conducted in Poland have confirmed that the mixture classified as supplies “from the oil fields of Kazakhstan” has the same chemical properties as the Russian REBCO.

The spokeswoman for the German Ministry of Economy and Climate admits that “even if certain molecules come from Russia on the basis of the so-called swap, the only significant factor is the certificate of origin confirming the origin from Kazakhstan, and the money from the sale reaches only Kazakhstan.”

“Due to the characteristics of crude oil, it is impossible for different oil blends not to mix while they are transported via the Friendship pipeline, but it is allowed under the current EU sanctions under specific circumstances. In order not to be subject to sanctions, blending must not increase the production or sales of Russian oil or create an avoidable advantage for Russian companies in any way. Therefore, the molecules are insignificant. It is important that there are no more supplies from Russia, so no money goes there,” the  interlocutor of the Maerkische Oderzeitung explained.

However, Poland says that the profit from the transfer of oil classified as from Kazakhstan and transported via Russia is transferred to Transneft. This company is famous for the contaminated oil scandal, and it still hasn’t paid any damages to western companies, including the clients of the Gdańsk refinery in Poland and the Schwedt refindery in Germany.

MOZ / Wojciech Jakóbik