Russia's Oil Exports From Black Sea Novorossiysk Port Rose To 650,000 Barrels Per Day In September, Up 50% From August — RTRS Cites Sources And Data Shows

Sept 22 (Reuters) — Russia's daily exports from the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk rose by 50% in the first 20 days of September compared with August as a whole, two trade sources said and data shows. Daily crude exports and transit shipments via Russia's Black Sea port of Novorossiysk have recovered to close to normal loading rates after disruptions caused by drone attacks. They rose by around 50% between September 1 and 20 versus August. Loadings of Urals, KEBCO and Siberian Light crude averaged about 650,000 bpd in the first 20 days of September, up from around 420,000 bpd in August, Higher volumes of Kazakh KEBCO Blend crude through the port as Russia diverted Kazakh transit from Baltic ports helped to drive the recovery. During the first two weeks of September, Novorossiysk handled about 350,000 metric tons of KEBCO Blend, according to trade source data. In August, the impact of drone attacks meant loadings fell to about 420,000 bpd, from roughly 800,000 bpd in July and a record 1 million bpd in June. Market participants said operational issues still constrained loading rates. One trader said slower loading speeds at the terminal limited the port's ability to significantly boost exports. Operations are still periodically suspended because of drone attacks, the trader said. Current shipment levels are nevertheless broadly in line with average loading rates before the latest disruptions. Repeated drone attacks on Novorossiysk this year have in some cases caused fires at the port and the nearby Sheskharis oil terminal, forcing temporary restrictions. Kazakhstan increased crude deliveries to Novorossiysk to about 460,000 metric tons in August, up from 360,000 tons in July, according to industry data. (Reporting; editing by Barbara Lewis)