There is no suggestion the trades break sanctions, although they may make it difficult for sanctions enforcement agencies in Europe and the United States to track Russian oil transactions and prices.
The new trading network and practices raise financial risks for Russian oil companies dealing with unknown entities with limited credit history.
"We recognise that (sanctions on Russia are) going to change the shape and structure of the Russian oil markets," the official told reporters.
In May, Russian seaborne oil supplies to India, which was a rare buyer of Russian oil before the war, reached a record of 1.95 million bpd while China imported 2.29 million bpd.
A source with one major Russian oil company said his company was prepared to deal with higher credit risks from buyers for the sake of having stable and rising oil exports.
Persons:
Russia's, Rosneft, Everest, Coral, Washington, Lukoil, Dmitry Zhdannikov, Nidhi Verma, Timothy Gardner, Laura Sanicola, Simon Webb, Frank Jack Daniel Our
Organizations:
NEW, Liberian, Reuters, Shell, Group, European Union, Bellatrix Energy, Leopard, Guron, SEA, Coral Energy, Everest Energy, U.S . Treasury, EU, UK, Treasury, UAE dirham, Shipping, Hindustan Petroleum, Gazprom Neft, Covart Energy, Orion Energy, Media, Rosneft, Nidhi, Thomson
Locations:
Russia, Ukraine MOSCOW, NEW DELHI, Russia's Ust, Hong Kong, India, Moscow, Asia, Ukraine, Refinitiv, Europe, United States, Australia, China, U.S, UAE, Dubai, Visakhapatnam, Surgutneftegaz, Russian, Geneva, Singapore, Rosneft, Venezuela, MOSCOW, LONDON, Washington, New York