As Russia’s largest industry, the Russian energy sector has been a major focus of UK, European Union (EU), US and other Western sanctions designed to deter the continuation and escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. With sanctions touching on every aspect of Russia’s energy supply chain, these actions have reportedly begun to successfully dent the sector’s revenue.

The sanctions impact not only trade in Russian oil and gas, but also new equity, debt and investment in energy projects; exports to Russia of equipment and parts used in energy production; as well as designations of specific companies and individuals in the sector. In designing and implementing these sanctions, Western governments have had to carefully thread between restricting the Russian energy sector and ensuring the satisfaction of domestic energy needs. Most recently, the tension between the multilateral goals of prohibiting Russia from profiting from historically high prices of oil and gas and easing the international energy crisis contributed to the implementation of a coordinated price cap on Russian-origin oil and petroleum products traded between third countries. Russia has responded with increasingly complex countermeasures in an attempt to protect its energy sector.

With complex and ever-evolving restrictions spanning the energy market, it is important that individuals and companies remain abreast of developments and their impact on energy-related transactions. Breaking down the path that sanctions have charted over the past year reveals trends, hurdles and a hint at what’s to come.