October 22, 2025 [Reuters]- Russian company Russneft has supplied a first oil cargo to the newly built Kulevi oil refinery in Georgia this month, according to LSEG ship-tracking data and industry sources.

Russia and Georgia have had no formal diplomatic ties since 2008, when they fought a brief war over the Moscow-backed breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

However, under the ruling Georgian Dream party, Tbilisi has deepened economic ties with Russia, while relations with Western countries have soured dramatically.

According to LSEG and a trader, the tanker Kayseri delivered 105,340 metric tons of Siberian Light oil grade from the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiisk to the Kulevi Oil Terminal on October 6.

Russneft did not reply to a request for comment.

Russia is seeking to diversify its exports while tackling challenges from Western sanctions over Ukraine.

With its first oil refinery, Georgia aims to reduce dependency on imports of fuel from Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Romania and Kazakhstan.

It started operations this month, with an initial processing capacity of about 1.2 million tons of oil a year, or about 24,000 barrels per day.

It will gradually increase its annual capacity to 4 million tons in 2028, aiming to supply fuel both for export and the domestic market.