Germany's BSW pushes to restore Russian oil to Schwedt refinery
BERLIN, Nov 27 (Reuters) -Germany's leftist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), set to join a new Social Democrat-led regional state government in Brandenburg, announced plans on Wednesday to push for the main refinery that supplies most of Berlin's needs to be supplied with Russian oil once more.
Germany stopped buying Russian oil in January 2023 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Since then, flows through the Druzhba pipeline to the Schwedt refinery - traditionally supplying 90% of Berlin's fuel - have dropped sharply, as the EU has banned the Russian oil.
The refinery, co-owned by Russian oil company Rosneft, Shell and Eni, has been relying heavily on Kazakh oil to continue operations.
BSW is a Russia-friendly, anti-NATO party that took third place in the regional election in September.
BSW state chairman Robert Crumbach acknowledged that Brandenburg, where the refinery is located, lacks the authority to reopen the Druzhba pipeline, but said that EU sanctions on Russia harm the state's economy, urging diplomatic efforts to end the Ukraine war and normalise trade with Russia.
"We have to act," Crumbach said when asked about the refinery's future, adding that it was important to address the needs of energy-intensive industries in the state.
Brandenburg's incumbent premier, Dietmar Woidke, who is expected to continue in his role, dismissed the idea, joking that the state had no plans to establish a foreign ministry.
The German economy ministry was not immediately available to comment on the proposal.
Reporting by Riham Alkousaa and Alexander Ratz; Editing by Rachel More and Mark Porter
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