The European Union has included the Kulevi oil refinery in its 21st package of sanctions against Russia, giving the facility six months to stop processing Russian oil before restrictions take effect.
The EU said a ban on transactions with the refinery, located in western Georgia, will enter into force in six months if it continues processing and selling Russian oil.
The refinery’s owner, Black Sea Petroleum, announced on July 1 that it plans to stop processing Russian oil in August or September.
The 21st sanctions package also targets 14 cryptocurrency service providers operating in Georgia, Panama, the United Arab Emirates, the Marshall Islands, Kyrgyzstan and Belarus.
RFE/RL reports, citing an informed source, that this is the first time the EU has introduced a six-month grace period before sanctions take effect. The source said the decision reflects Tbilisi’s stated willingness to meet the bloc’s requirements following earlier discussions over sanctions on the Kulevi port.
The sanctions apply to the Kulevi oil refinery, not the Kulevi oil terminal. During negotiations on the EU’s 20th sanctions package, the port was removed from the proposed sanctions list after what the EU described as “positive commitments” from the Georgian authorities and the port operator.
In a letter to Foreign Minister Maka Bochorishvili, EU Special Representative David O’Sullivan said the commitments had been taken into account. European Commission spokesperson Siobhan McGarry later said the Georgian authorities had confirmed they would stop the relevant re-exports and that the EU would continue monitoring implementation.
If the refinery continues processing Russian oil after the six-month period, the EU says transaction restrictions will take effect.
The Kulevi oil terminal, owned by Azerbaijan’s SOCAR, is a logistics hub used to receive, store and load oil and petroleum products onto tankers. It does not refine crude oil.
The Kulevi oil refinery, operated by Black Sea Petroleum, is a separate industrial facility located near the terminal and connected to it for receiving crude oil and exporting refined products.
