CREA says September Urals price exceeded EU and UK cap by more than double

The average price of Russian Urals crude rose 32% from August to $90.7 a barrel in September, according to an October 16 report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, or CREA.

September’s average was more than twice the $44.1-a-barrel cap set by the EU and the UK. CREA says the policy worked only temporarily and primarily for Urals, leaving other grades and export channels largely unaffected.

The centre nevertheless argues that the mechanism could be strengthened. It recommends either a lower baseline cap or a charge for using Western maritime services to transport Russian fossil fuels.