Russian oil arrives in the Philippines after the country declared a state of emergency

The Sierra Leone-flagged oil tanker “Sara Sky”, loaded with high-quality crude oil from the Russian “Espoo” pipeline, arrived on Monday with documents showing that the addressee was Petron Corp., the operator of the only oil refinery in the Philippines, according to what the source, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press, explained.
The Philippines relies heavily on imported fuel, the cost of which has reached record levels since the US-Israeli war with Iran caused the partial closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
On Thursday, an Agence France-Presse journalist saw the “Sara Sky” ship anchored in Limay Port near Manila, where the Petron refinery is located. This is the first Russian oil shipment to arrive in the Philippines in five years, according to what media reported.
Last week, Ramon Ang, Petron’s CEO, told AFP that the company was “in talks” for a potential purchase of Russian oil and on Thursday, he declined to confirm the shipment’s arrival.
On Wednesday, President Ferdinand Marcos said that the Philippines is making extensive efforts in its search for fuel, as the country’s reserves are expected to last only 45 days.
He added in a press conference, “We did not limit ourselves to turning to our traditional suppliers of oil. Rather, we are trying to explore other sources that are not affected by the ongoing war in the Middle East. Nothing is excluded. We are studying everything, everything we can do.”
This month, the United States lifted some restrictions on Russian crude oil sales, allowing countries to buy oil that was found in the sea, until April 11.