In the first seven months of 2021, Germany’s crude oil imports plunged due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, but the bills rose by almost a third.
In the January-July period, oil imports volumes dropped to 44.9 million tonnes, compared to 48.7 million tonnes in the same period of last year.
However, the country spent EUR17.9 billion (USD20.98 billion) on crude imports in the period, a jump of 29.7% year-on-year as Brent crude prices have gained 43% this year.
Russia was the country’s biggest crude supplier in the period, making up 33.6% of the total. The British and Norwegian North Sea followed by 19.1%. Shipments from the members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) contributed 16.0%. The rest was shared among other sources including, prominently, the US and Kazakhstan.
According to the BAFA foreign trade office, the average oil prices paid for each tonne at the national border had seen a jump of 40.7% year-on-year at EUR398.65/tonne (USD467.2/tonne).
