Speaking at a meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects this week, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey Belousov told the crowd that this year, Russia will export more oil than before the beginning of the military conflict in Ukraine, which demonstrates the failure of Western sanctions. According to the data he presented, this year Russia will export about 250 million tons of oil, which is 7% higher than its exports in 2021.

Belousov went on to say, “The most pressing problems last year have generally been resolved. This firstly concerns payments and cargo insurance, [and] secondly, ensuring seaborne shipping of hydrocarbons by the tanker fleet… Russian energy exports in monetary terms have practically reached the levels of 2021 to remain at a level that is comfortable for the budget and companies.”

From April to October, Russia nearly doubled its income from the sale of crude despite pressures the West attempted to apply through sanctions, and the huge deficit which was forecast for the government’s budget. According to Russian Finance Ministry data, roughly 31% of the nation’s overall budget revenue for the month of October was provided by the country’s net oil revenues of $11.3 billion.

Russia has managed to overcome the raft of Western sanctions applied to it by rerouting nearly all of its exports of oil from Western destinations to Asia, as it has reportedly begun moving its exports of crude on a massive fleet of older tankers, which has been referred to as its “shadow fleet.” The shadow fleet has proven essentially immune to international sanctions, including price caps and limitations on shipping services such as brokerage.

Belousov gave his speech after the US Treasury Department announced it was extending its economic sanctions on Russia, in an effort to tighten the global enforcement of the price cap on Russian seaborne crude. The Treasury Department’s new restrictions will be focused on “several obscure oil traders who have emerged as frequent participants in the seaborne transportation of Russian-origin oil following the imposition of the price cap,” according to a statement by the agency.

Treasury also gave new guidance which was designed to strengthen the attestation and recordkeeping process for some service providers.