Could US replace Russian oil?
Most experts agreed that the U.S. could replace Russian oil by increasing domestic production — though some cautioned there might be a lag.
U.S. LNG Cannot Replace The Russian Natural Gas That Europe Has Lost. Europe has relied on U.S. LNG imports to offset the loss of Russian gas, with nearly 70% of U.S. LNG exports heading to Europe in September.
Refiners are expected to look to Norway, the Middle East, the United States and West Africa for alternative supplies, according to analysts. The hunt for substitutes has led in two recent instances to Mars, a U.S. sour grade similar to Russia's Urals.
Even in a worst-case scenario, in which there is no piped Russian gas and low demand destruction, BNEF estimates Europe would still have enough gas to endure the coldest winter of the last 30 years without depleting its inventories. Looking further ahead, the region could be well-positioned for winter 2023-24 as well.
Conclusion. The United States—and the world—cannot drill its way out of oil price volatility or into real energy independence. Energy prices are high because fossil fuels are a global market highly influenced by conflicts around the world.
Replacing 130 bcm of natural gas imports from Russia within a year would be a significant challenge, but, as our rough estimates show, not impossible.
The bloc's proposed gas replacements by the end of 2022 – which include LNG (liquefied natural gas) diversification, renewables, heating efficiency, pipeline diversification, biomethane, solar rooftops and heat pumps – amount to around 102 bcm annually, according to data from the EU Commission's REPowerEU, aggregated ...
A recent life cycle analysis conducted by the Department of Energy's (DOE's) National Energy Technology Laboratory on U.S. LNG exports show that American LNG can be up to 30% cleaner than Russian natural gas.
The USA could provide us with LNG
This week Toby Rice, who runs the country's largest natural gas producer EQT, told the BBC that the US could easily replace Russian supply. "We've got the ability to do more, the desire to do more," he said, estimating that the US has the potential to quadruple its gas output by 2030.
Prices for oil would likely go up, not just for Europe but for the rest of the world too, because oil is a global commodity and a net loss of supplies from Russia would be likely. That would mean higher costs for driving and heating fuel and more consumer inflation.
How long will it take to replace Russian oil?
Rystad Energy, a research company, estimates an average time of eight months from spudding (starting) a new well to oil flowing to market.
The EU is seeking to offset the decline in Russian crude imports by increasing supplies from the Middle East, West Africa, Norway, Brazil and Guyana, the IEA has said. The United States and Kazakhstan could help to replace the approximately 1.1 million bpd of Russian oil that will be lost after Dec.

The consulting group Rystad Energy has calculated that Europe has enough gas stored to survive this winter unless it gets very cold, while natural gas prices have fallen to their lowest levels since June.
China to boost gas imports from Russia by 50B cubic meters through construction of Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, which is expected to be operational by 2030. China is set to overtake the European Union (EU) as the main consumer of Russian natural gas after the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline comes online by 2030.
If Europe can replicate its own maximum rate of deployment of nuclear power (which happened from the late 70s to early 80s), it could push out Russian gas out within 6 years. If Europe can replicate some of the faster rates, like those historically observed in Sweden, it could push out Russian gas within three years.
And yet that same report reveals that the U.S. imported 7.86 million barrels of oil per day last year. That happens because of a combination of economics and chemistry. The economics are simple: overseas oil, even after shipping costs, is often cheaper than domestically-produced crude.
They consider fossil-fuel production to be a question of national security, and they regulate it as such. The United States does not take this approach to its fossil fuels. The federal government does not claim any right to the oil or gas under private land.
The biggest reason oil production isn't increasing is that American energy companies and Wall Street investors are not sure that prices will stay high long enough for them to make a profit from drilling lots of new wells.
The world would literally grind to a halt if oil was not available. Nearly two-thirds of the world's oil consumption is used to fuel our various modes of transport, from airplanes and cars to buses and cargo ships.
A sudden loss of oil supplies would make it impossible to meet world energy needs. Countries have very varying stocks of natural gas which they could tap, and Johansen says such resources would be quickly depleted.
What percent of US oil comes from Russia?
In 2021, imports from Russia accounted for 8% of all U.S. petroleum imports, which includes the 3% share of crude oil imports and the 20% share of petroleum product imports.
A full shutdown, while not their base case, could drive European household energy costs up by about 65% to around €500 ($512) per month, according to estimates by Goldman Sachs Research. Industries like chemicals and cement in Germany and Italy might have to cut their gas usage by as much as 80%.
In the absence of LNG reception terminals, Germany is building floating LNG terminals (FSRUs), of which two will be ready at the turn of the year, in Brunsbuettel and Wilhelmshaven. Two more will follow at Stade and Lubmin. The four will have a total capacity of 22.5 bcm. A fifth FSRU is planned for winter 2023/24.
MILAN, July 29 (Reuters) - Italian energy group Eni (ENI. MI) believes it will be able to completely replace Russian gas imports by 2025 as uncertainty over Moscow's energy supplies to Europe forces countries to seek alternative sources.
States Oil Production
So in that sense it doesn't really matter who specifically is getting crunched by the loss of Russian oil, because lower supply affects those global prices no matter what. And as we know from Econ 101, when there's less supply of an item in demand, prices rise.
Of the oils analyzed, Tengiz offered the "cleanest," least carbon-intensive petroleum. The Suncor Synthetic H oil pumped out of Canada, meanwhile, produced the most emissions—over 810 kilograms of carbon per barrel, compared with Tengiz's 450 kg.
Its top five LNG consumers are Japan, China, France, Spain and Taiwan, according to the BP Statistical Review of World Energy. Other European Union countries are also heavily dependent on Russian natural gas, which accounted for 45% of the bloc's imports in 2021, according to the European Commission.
Europe ramped up imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2022. While the Russian share in Europe's LNG imports has decreased since the war began, the European Union still imported 11.8 million tons of LNG from Moscow between March and October this year.
The United States produces most of its oil domestically, but the rest comes from Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and, before this ban, 10 percent of its imported oil came from Russia. The United States relies on Russia for only about 3 percent of the oil it consumes — about 600,000 barrels per day.
The effort could hurt Russia but could also help drive up already high oil prices, hurting the global economy and enriching energy companies.
What if Europe stopped buying Russian oil?
Russia would probably produce and export less oil after losing its biggest customer, Europe. That's because all of Russia's exports can't simply be redirected from nearby Europe to far-off Asia due to shipping and logistical constraints. It would mean a major reshuffling of the world's crude oil flows.
The U.S. imports Russian oil, but it's not highly dependent on the country for its supply, according to U.S. energy experts.
The biggest reason oil production isn't increasing is that American energy companies and Wall Street investors are not sure that prices will stay high long enough for them to make a profit from drilling lots of new wells.
- The top five sources of U.S. total petroleum (including crude oil) imports by percentage share of total petroleum imports in 2021 were:
- Canada51%
- Mexico8%
- Russia8%
- Saudi Arabia5%
- Colombia2%
States Oil Production
So in that sense it doesn't really matter who specifically is getting crunched by the loss of Russian oil, because lower supply affects those global prices no matter what. And as we know from Econ 101, when there's less supply of an item in demand, prices rise.
"We produce more oil and gas than any other country in the world." This was confirmed by the Energy Information Administration. The EIA listed the U.S. as the top producer, with 18.61 million barrels per day, equivalent to 20% of the world supply.
The United States and Canada banned the import of Russia's oil and the European Union this month banned imports by sea.
EU imports of Russian fossil fuels were worth around 150 billion US dollars in 2021. The EU can move away from fossil fuel imports from Russia, but this will require energy solidarity between EU countries. The structure of dependence on Russian fossil fuels varies between countries.
Based on a standard economic approach, our analysis shows that a full cut-off from Russian gas supply as of August 2022 would exhaust gas reserves by end-2022. Some countries will be hit more severely than others, in particular Austria, Belgium, Germany, and Italy.
What's more, any curbs on Russian oil exports could send already skyrocketing oil and gasoline prices ever higher on both continents and further squeeze consumers, businesses, financial markets and the global economy.
Why does the US buy oil from Russia?
That's because they take longer to process and need specialized refining equipment. This cheap, lower-quality crude comes from Canada, Venezuela and Russia, among other spots. Back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, it was the product U.S. refiners were buying.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Agency, it's not even close. The EIA reports that as of 2021, the U.S. produced 18.88 million barrels per day — or about 10 million per day more than no. 2 Saudi Arabia (10.84 million) and no. 3 Russia (10.78 million).