Energy
Breaking the Ice: Mapping a Changing Arctic
Breaking the Ice: Mapping a Changing Arctic
The Arctic is changing. As retreating ice cover makes this region more accessible, nations with Arctic real estate are thinking of developing these subzero landscapes and the resources below.
As the Arctic evolves, a vast amount of resources will become more accessible and longer shipping seasons will improve Arctic logistics. But with a changing climate and increased public pressure to limit resource development in environmentally sensitive regions, the future of northern economic activity is far from certain.
This weekโs Chart of the Week shows the location of major oil and gas fields in the Arctic and the possible new trade routes through this frontier.
A Final Frontier for Undiscovered Resources?
Underneath the Arctic Circle lies massive oil and natural gas formations. The United States Geological Survey estimates that the Arctic contains approximately 13% of the world’s undiscovered oil resources and about 30% of its undiscovered natural gas resources.
So far, most exploration in the Arctic has occurred on land. This work produced the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field in Alaska, the Tazovskoye Field in Russia, and hundreds of smaller fields, many of which are on Alaska’s North Slope, an area now under environmental protection.
Land accounts for about 1/3 of the Arctic’s area and is thought to hold about 16% of the Arctic’s remaining undiscovered oil and gas resources. A further 1/3 of the Arctic area is comprised of offshore continental shelves, which are thought to contain enormous amounts of resources but remain largely unexplored by geologists.
The remaining 1/3 of the Arctic is deep ocean waters measuring thousands of feet in depth.
The Arctic circle is about the same geographic size as the African continentโabout 6% of Earth’s surface areaโyet it holds an estimated 22% of Earth’s oil and natural gas resources. This paints a target on the Arctic for exploration and development, especially with shorter seasons of ice coverage improving ocean access.
Thawing Ice Cover: Improved Ocean Access, New Trading Routes
As Arctic ice melts, sea routes will stay navigable for longer periods, which could drastically change international trade and shipping. September ice coverage has decreased by more than 25% since 1979, although the area within the Arctic Circle is still almost entirely covered with ice from November to July.
Route | Length | Ice-free Time |
---|---|---|
Northern Sea Route | 4,740 Nautical Miles | 6 weeks of open waters |
Transpolar Sea Route | 4,179 Nautical Miles | 2 weeks of open waters |
Northwest Passage | 5,225 Nautical Miles | Periodically ice-free |
Arctic Bridge | 3,600 Nautical Miles | Ice-free |
Typically shipping to Japan from Rotterdam would use the Suez Canal and take about 30 days, whereas a route from New York would use the Panama Canal and take about 25 days.
But if the Europe-Asia trip used the Northern Sea Route along the northern coast of Russia, the trip would last 18 days and the distance would shrink from ~11,500 nautical miles to ~6,900 nautical miles. For the U.S.-Asia trip through the Northwest Passage, it would take 21 days, rather than 25.
Control of these routes could bring significant advantages to countries and corporations looking for a competitive edge.
Competing Interests: Arctic Neighbors
Eight countries lay claim to land that lies within the Arctic Circle: Canada, Denmark (through its administration of Greenland), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States.
There is no consistent agreement among these nations regarding the claims to oil and gas beneath the Arctic Ocean seafloor. However, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea provides each country an exclusive economic zone extending 200 miles out from its shoreline and up to 350 miles, under certain geological conditions.
Uncertain geology and politics has led to overlapping territorial disputes over how each nation defines and maps its claims based on the edge of continental margins. For example, Russia claims that their continental margin follows the Lomonosov Ridge all the way to the North Pole. In another, both the U.S. and Canada claim a portion of the Beaufort Sea, which is thought to contain significant oil and natural gas resources.
To Develop or Not to Develop
Just because the resources are there does not mean humans have to exploit them, especially given oilโs environmental impacts. Canadaโs federal government has already returned security deposits that oil majors had paid to drill in Canadian Arctic waters, which are currently off limits until at least 2021.
In total, the Government of Canada returned US$327 million worth of security deposits, or 25% of the money oil companies pledged to spend on exploration in the Beaufort Sea. In addition, Goldman Sachs announced that it would not finance any projects in the U.S.โs Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
The retreat of Western economic interests in the Arctic may leave the region to Russia and China, countries with less strict environmental regulations.
Russia has launched an ambitious plan to remilitarize the Arctic. Specifically, Russia is searching for evidence to prove its territorial claims to additional portions of the Arctic, so that it can move its Arctic borderline โ which currently measures over 14,000 miles in length โ further north.
In a changing Arctic, this potentially resource-rich region could become another venue for geopolitical tensions, again testing whether humans can be proper stewards of the natural world.
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Energy
Who’s Still Buying Fossil Fuels From Russia?
Here are the top importers of Russian fossil fuels since the start of the war.

The Largest Importers of Russian Fossil Fuels Since the War
This was originally posted on Elements. Sign up to the free mailing list to get beautiful visualizations on natural resource megatrends in your email every week.
Despite looming sanctions and import bans, Russia exported $97.7 billion worth of fossil fuels in the first 100 days since its invasion of Ukraine, at an average of $977 million per day.
So, which fossil fuels are being exported by Russia, and who is importing these fuels?
The above infographic tracks the biggest importers of Russiaโs fossil fuel exports during the first 100 days of the war based on data from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
In Demand: Russiaโs Black Gold
The global energy market has seen several cyclical shocks over the last few years.
The gradual decline in upstream oil and gas investment followed by pandemic-induced production cuts led to a drop in supply, while people consumed more energy as economies reopened and winters got colder. Consequently, fossil fuel demand was rising even before Russiaโs invasion of Ukraine, which exacerbated the market shock.
Russia is the third-largest producer and second-largest exporter of crude oil. In the 100 days since the invasion, oil was by far Russiaโs most valuable fossil fuel export, accounting for $48 billion or roughly half of the total export revenue.
Fossil fuel | Revenue from exports (Feb 24 - June 4) | % of total Russian fossil fuel export revenue |
---|---|---|
Crude oil | $48.3B | 49.4% |
Pipeline gas | $25.2B | 25.8% |
Oil products | $13.6B | 13.9% |
Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) | $5.4B | 5.5% |
Coal | $5.0B | 5.1% |
Total | $97.7B | 100% |
While Russian crude oil is shipped on tankers, a network of pipelines transports Russian gas to Europe. In fact, Russia accounts for 41% of all natural gas imports to the EU, and some countries are almost exclusively dependent on Russian gas. Of the $25 billion exported in pipeline gas, 85% went to the EU.
The Top Importers of Russian Fossil Fuels
The EU bloc accounted for 61% of Russiaโs fossil fuel export revenue during the 100-day period.
Germany, Italy, and the Netherlandsโmembers of both the EU and NATOโwere among the largest importers, with only China surpassing them.
Country | Value of fossil fuel imports from Russia (Feb 24 - Jun 4) | % of Russian fossil fuel export revenue |
---|---|---|
๐จ๐ณ China | $13.2B | 13.5% |
๐ฉ๐ช Germany | $12.7B | 12.9% |
๐ฎ๐น Italy | $8.2B | 8.4% |
๐ณ๐ฑ Netherlands | $8.2B | 8.4% |
๐น๐ท Turkey | $7.0B | 7.2% |
๐ต๐ฑ Poland | $4.6B | 4.7% |
๐ซ๐ท France | $4.5B | 4.6% |
๐ฎ๐ณ India | $3.6B | 3.7% |
๐ Other | $35.7B | 36.5% |
Total | $97.7B | 100% |
China overtook Germany as the largest importer, importing nearly 2 million barrels of discounted Russian oil per day in Mayโup 55% relative to a year ago. Similarly, Russia surpassed Saudi Arabia as China’s largest oil supplier.
The biggest increase in imports came from India, buying 18% of all Russian oil exports during the 100-day period. A significant amount of the oil that goes to India is re-exported as refined products to the U.S. and Europe, which are trying to become independent of Russian imports.
Reducing Reliance on Russia
In response to the invasion of Ukraine, several countries have taken strict action against Russia through sanctions on exports, including fossil fuels.ย
The U.S. and Sweden have banned Russian fossil fuel imports entirely, with monthly import volumes down 100% and 99% in May relative to when the invasion began, respectively.
On a global scale, monthly fossil fuel import volumes from Russia were down 15% in May, an indication of the negative political sentiment surrounding the country.
Itโs also worth noting that several European countries, including some of the largest importers over the 100-day period, have cut back on Russian fossil fuels. Besides the EUโs collective decision to reduce dependence on Russia, some countries have also refused the countryโs ruble payment scheme, leading to a drop in imports.
The import curtailment is likely to continue. The EU recently adopted a sixth sanction package against Russia, placing a complete ban on all Russian seaborne crude oil products. The ban, which covers 90% of the EUโs oil imports from Russia, will likely realize its full impact after a six-to-eight month period that permits the execution of existing contracts.
While the EU is phasing out Russian oil, several European countries are heavily reliant on Russian gas. A full-fledged boycott on Russiaโs fossil fuels would also hurt the European economyโtherefore, the phase-out will likely be gradual, and subject to the changing geopolitical environment.
Oil and Gas
How Affordable is Gas in Latin America?
This graphic looks at gas affordability in Latin America, showing how much a liter of gas costs in 19 countries, relative to average incomes.

How Affordable is Gas in Latin America?
As gas prices have risen around the world, not each region and country is impacted equally.
Globally, the average price for a liter of gas was $1.44 USD on June 13, 2022.
But the actual price at the pump, and how affordable that price is for residents, varies greatly from country to country. This is especially true in Latin America, a region widely regarded as one of the worldโs most unequal regions in terms of its income and resource distribution.
Using monthly data from GlobalPetrolPrices.com as of May 2022, this graphic by Latinometrics compares gas affordability in different countries across Latin America.
Gas Affordability in 19 Different Latin American Countries
To measure gas affordability, Latinometrics took the price of a liter of gas in 19 different Latin American countries and territories, and divided those figures by each countryโs average daily income, using salary data from Statista.
Out of the 19 regions included in the dataset, Venezuela has the most affordable gas on the list. In Venezuela, a liter of gas is equivalent to roughly 1.3% of the countryโs average daily income.
Country | Gas price as of May 2022 (USD) | % of average daily income |
---|---|---|
๐ณ๐ฎ Nicaragua | $1.37 | 14.0% |
โ๐ฉ๐ดโ Dominican Republic | $1.41 | 12.6% |
๐ง๐ทโ Brazil | $1.43 | 12.5% |
๐ต๐พโ Paraguay | $1.39 | 12.2% |
๐ต๐ช Peru | $1.53 | 10.2% |
๐บ๐พ Uruguay | $1.92 | 9.8% |
๐ธ๐ปโ El Salvador | $1.14 | 9.2% |
โโ๐ญ๐ณโ Honduras | $1.33 | 8.6% |
๐ฒ๐ฝโ Mexico | $1.17 | 7.8% |
๐ฌ๐นโ Guatemala | $1.44 | 7.7% |
๐ฆ๐ท Argentina | $1.06 | 6.7% |
โ๐จ๐ฑโ Chile | $1.37 | 6.6% |
๐จ๐ทโ Costa Rica | $1.42 | 5.9% |
๐จ๐ด Colombia | $0.58 | 5.7% |
โ๐ต๐ฆ โPanama | $1.27 | 5.0% |
๐ช๐จ Ecuador | $0.67 | 4.1% |
๐ง๐ด Bolivia | $0.54 | 3.2% |
๐ต๐ทโ Puerto Rico | $1.35 | 2.2% |
๐ป๐ชโ Venezuela | $0.02 | 1.3% |
This isn’t too surprising, as Venezuela is home to the largest share of proven oil reserves in the world. However, itโs worth noting that international sanctions against Venezuelan oil, largely because of political corruption, have hampered the once prosperous sector in the country.
On the other end of the spectrum, Nicaragua has the least affordable gas on the list, with one liter of gas costing 14% of the average daily income in the country.
Historically, the Nicaraguan government has not regulated gas prices in the country, but in light of the current global energy crisis triggered in large part by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the government has stepped in to help control the situation.
As the Russia-Ukraine conflict continues with no end in sight, itโll be interesting to see where prices are at in the next few months.
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