The US has urged Ukraine to halt attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure, warning that the drone strikes risk driving up global oil prices and provoking retaliation, according to three people familiar with the discussions. […]
One person said that the White House had grown increasingly frustrated by brazen Ukrainian drone attacks that have struck oil refineries, terminals, depots and storage facilities across western Russia, hurting its oil production capacity.
Russia remains one of the world’s most important energy exporters despite western sanctions on its oil and gas sector. Oil prices have risen about 15 per cent this year, to $85 a barrel, pushing up fuel costs just as US President Joe Biden begins his campaign for re-election.
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Oil prices in this case is a broad term. Countries that can refine crude prefer to do so, as it makes a lot of money. At the end of the day, the normal person at the gast station doesn’t care if the crude was cheaper or more expensive. They care about what they pay for gasoline.
More specific to the infrastructure often the oil is directly delivered to the refinery and only the refined products make it onto the market at all. So by cutting off the refinery also the oil exploration that comes before is cut off from the market.