Turkey and Bulgaria remain the only buyers of the grade in Europe's seaports, the data show.
The rise in Urals shipments to Asia comes amid a general
increase in Russia's seaborne oil supplies. Crude loadings from
Primorsk and Ust-Luga this month are set to rise 50% from
December to above 7 million tonnes - the highest in four years.
Urals supplies for ship-to-ship transfers for further
deliveries to Asia in January are expected to reach at least 1.4
million tonnes.
Russian oil flows to Turkey this month, meanwhile, were
assessed at around 400,000 tonnes, while Bulgaria, which is
excluded from a European Union ban on Russian oil, is set to
receive about 560,000 tonnes of Urals and Siberian Light.
Russia has been diverting its trade away from the EU to
other markets, mainly in Asia and Latin America, amid the deep
political rift that followed Moscow's move to send tens of
thousands of troops into Ukraine last February.
(Reporting by Reuters
Editing by Mark Potter)