A well head and a drilling rig in the Yarakta oilfield
Russia’s quest for energy ‘technological sovereignty’, part 1
The country inherited a near self-sufficient oil and gas industry from the USSR, and it is working fast to eliminate shortfalls in its domestic capability, where advanced drilling and subsea technologies remain a vulnerability
Western sanctions imposed in the wake of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 cut Russia’s oil and gas industry off from most best-in-class technologies, equipment and services in the world. Yet, in many areas, the sector has proved resilient to this pressure. Production and refining runs have both fallen from pre-war levels, but due to OPEC+ quotas and Ukrainian drone strikes respectively, and not as a result of sanctions. Simply put, the impact of sanctions blocking Russia’s access to Western technology and equipment should not be overstated. This resilience owes a lot to the fact Russia inherited a near self-sufficient oil and gas industry from the Soviet Union, with a
Also in this section
28 April 2026
Oil traders warning of $200/bl oil are wrong, and the market should be wary of proclamations that the impact of the oil shortage has only begun to be felt and a that a ‘harsh adjustment’ is coming—even for industrialised nations
28 April 2026
Restoring supply from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Iraq involves complexities far beyond simply adjusting operational controls
28 April 2026
Datacentres will guzzle power at a ferocious rate, but the impact on wider energy markets will be far more complex than previously thought
28 April 2026
The key energy player faces balancing regional routes, political complexities, and creating a clear strategic vision for energy security
