Russia plans to establish several oil storage facilities and a number of new exporting outlets in a move to mitigate the fallout of international sanctions on the country’s oil sales, officials told Reuters.

This comes as Russia has been struggling with its crude oil and oil products sales as sanctions over the Ukraine invasion have complicated funding trade deals as well as hire vessels, while the US in March introduced bans on the oil imports from Russia.

Russia does not have huge oil storage, which would allow them extra flexibility in exports and production. “Some companies have been engaged in such projects and have been implementing it,” Russian Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin told reporters.