Sechin ruled out U.S. agreement to lower the ceiling on Russian oil prices

The United States will not approve the European Union's proposal to lower the ceiling on Russian oil prices to $45 per barrel, as this could worsen the profitability of American oil exports. Igor Sechin, Chief Executive Officer of Rosneft, said this on June 21 during a speech at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2025).

"It is obvious that the United States will not agree to the reduction in reference prices promoted by the Europeans, because it will negatively affect the profitability of US oil exports," Sechin said.

In his opinion, the EU's reduction in Russian oil prices is not aimed at reducing Russian budget revenues, but at improving its procurement conditions.

Sechin also noted that, according to Western experts, since the beginning of 2023, Europe has purchased over €20 billion worth of Russian oil, thus taking the fourth place in terms of purchases.

He noted that the oil market is very unstable and strongly depends on various geopolitical events. Therefore, Rosneft, in its business plan for 2025, expects an oil price of about $45 per barrel, and for 2026 — about $42-43.

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The Politico newspaper, citing European diplomats, said on June 20 that the European Union would not promote the idea of lowering the ceiling on Russian oil prices amid the worsening situation in the Middle East. Initially, it was proposed to reduce the marginal price of Russian oil from $60 to $45 per barrel. However, the plan was suspended due to rising tensions between Iran and Israel, which created risks of a spike in energy prices.