"As of the end of the business day on April 26, Gazprom Export had not received payments for gas supplies in April from Bulgargaz (Bulgaria) and PGNiG (Poland) in rubles," Gazprom said in a statement.

Brent were down 56 cents, or 0.5%, at $101.76 a barrel, WTI were down 56 cents, or 0.5%, at $101.76 a barrel.

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $101.93 a barrel

Traders are keeping a close watch on whether a resolution can be found on the Kremlin’s demand to be paid in rubles for its gas. European Union lawyers have said the new mechanism violates existing sanctions, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that flows could be cut if the terms aren’t met.

Brent was down $4.91, or 4.6%, at $101.74 a barrel, WTI fell $5.00, or 4.9%, to $97.07.

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $107.66 a barrel on Friday,

Динамика ускоренного энергоперехода также подгоняет цены на энергоресурсы. Все это обостряет проблемы бедности, продовольственной безопасности, доступности энергии.

"EU companies can ask their Russian counterparts to fulfil their contractual obligations in the same manner as before the adoption of the decree, ie. by depositing the due amount in euros or dollars," the EC said in the document.

U.S. Rig Count is up 2 from last week to 695 , Canada Rig Count is down 2 from last week to 101.

Brent was down 76 cents, or 0.7%, at $107.57 a barrel, WTI declined 32 cents, or 0.3%, to $103.47.

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $108.81 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $107.97 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations

Combined, Russia's seaborne crude and key oil products exports stood at 6.79 million b/d so far in April, down 640,000 b/d from 7.43 million b/d in February,

Oil production averaged 10.1 million barrels a day between April 1 and April 19, with the average production for the month forecast at 10 million barrels a day, down from the March average of 11.01 million barrels a day.

U.S. commercial crude oil inventories decreased by 8.0 million barrels to 413.7 million barrels.

Brent rose $1.04, or 1%, to $107.84 a barrel, WTI gained 61 cents, or 0.6%, to 102.80 a barrel.