Sergio Araujo, president of the Brazilian importers association Abicom, told Bloomberg the traders received the offers but found the terms unprofitable. If buyers do emerge, the 1.1 million barrels would nearly double Brazil's October imports of Russian diesel.
According to Kpler, the tankers Leruo, Cerrado, Primorye and Athina M are heading to Brazil after loading at the Primorsk port.
The fuel was originally intended for the United States. On October 9, Trump announced an agreement with Vladimir Putin on supplies of 4.8 million tonnes of Russian diesel to the US and global markets, after which the US Treasury issued a temporary import license. In early November, the Financial Times reported that two tankers carrying Russian diesel had changed course, with Leruo listing Brazil as its destination.
No Russian tanker has yet unloaded in the US. New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat, warned port operators and terminal owners that accepting Russian diesel could violate a 2022 federal law banning such imports. The state is home to some of the largest berths and oil storage facilities in New York Harbor.
The tanker Agioi Fanendes, carrying almost 300,000 barrels of Russian diesel, turned around about 740 km from New York and began moving in a zigzag pattern.
As of 2026, Brazil is the world's second-largest diesel importer after Australia, buying about 45 million barrels a year. The country covers roughly a third of its needs through foreign supplies. Demand usually peaks at the end of the year, when the Southern Hemisphere has the weather most favorable for agriculture: diesel trucks carry fertilizer, and farmers use tractors that run on the same fuel.
After the failed deal, US diesel prices rose from $6.28 a gallon (about 3.8 liters) in early October to $6.35 at the end of the month. Trump's actions drew criticism from members of both parties, prompted a drop in the president's approval ratings and ultimately became one of the reasons for the Republicans' defeat in the midterm congressional elections.