On 15 January 2026, the EU applied its new automatic and dynamic adjustment mechanism to the Oil Price Cap (“OPC”) on seaborne Russian crude oil, reducing the cap from USD 47.60 to USD 44.10 per barrel, effective 1 February 2026. The mechanism ensures that the OPC remains 15% below the average Urals crude market price over a rolling 22‑week period.
On the same day, the UK confirmed that it would lower its OPC to USD 44.10 per barrel, effective 23:01 GMT on 31 January 2026, thereby maintaining close alignment with the EU regime. The UK has also updated its Oil Price Cap Guidance and FAQs guidance (in particular, FAQs 154-161) to reflect these changes to the OPC.
Both jurisdictions have also introduced wind‑down periods for contracts signed under the previous cap of USD 47.60 per barrel: the EU permits execution for 90 days after 15 January, while the UK allows such trades until 16 April 2026 as part of the UK’s 45-day wind-down period. If you require any support in relation to these measures, please do let us know.
We would like to express our thanks and acknowledge Raghav Kaushal for his contribution to this article.
