Georgian port refinery to drop Russian crude under EU pressure

Black Sea Petroleum (BSP), owner of the oil refinery at the Georgian port of Kulevi, will completely halt the processing of Russian crude oil by late August or early September following targeted sanctions warnings from the European Union, a company official announced on July 25, 2026.

Speaking on the Georgian television channel Pirveli, BSP Supervisory Board member Vakhtang Chakhnashvili confirmed the decision, which comes immediately after Brussels introduced preventive measures against the facility.

The European Union enacted the preventive sanctions framework on July 24. Under the terms, full restriction measures against the Kulevi plant will automatically take effect on January 25, 2027, unless the refinery entirely phases out Russian crude feeds.

Chakhnashvili noted that the pivot is necessary not only to avoid compliance penalties but also to support BSP's long-term commercial strategy to enter European markets, which requires securing alternative, non-sanctioned crude supplies.

The company executive underscored the necessity of the transition, emphasising that if the refinery continued to import Russian oil, it would definitely face EU sanctions.

By Tamilla Hasanova