The European Union is floating a plan to cap the price of premium Russian refined fuel exports like diesel at $100 a barrel, with a lower $45 cap for discounted products, according to people familiar with the matter.

The EU’s executive arm is considering those target levels after the Group of Seven offered a price range based in part on the existing cap on crude oil, but those levels could still change during talks with member states. The bloc is set to ban imports of refined Russian products starting Feb. 5. as part of an effort to sanction Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

The EU and G-7 want to impose price caps on Russian exports to third countries, but the pricing is variable and volatile. The higher price of $100 per barrel would apply to products like diesel, which trade at a premium to crude. The $45 per barrel level would apply to discounted ones like fuel oil, the people said. 

The negotiations are complicated by the EU’s effort to balance two competing goals: limiting Russian revenue and preventing price spikes or shortages in key products on the global market. The EU will have to agree unanimously on price cap levels, which the G-7 will then need to approve.

EU diplomats will start discussing the prices levels Friday and heated talks are expected to continue over the next several days, with a group of countries seeking to impose stricter limits on Russian revenues from oil exports and toughen broader EU sanctions on Moscow.

European officials have been worried in particular about shortages of diesel after the ban, and the price cap is aimed at making sure Russian exports can still be sold to other parts of the world.

G-7 officials expect that Russian diesel currently sold to Europe will likely find buyers in Latin America and Africa. Europe, meanwhile, will try to buy diesel from the Middle East and the US, which currently sell more to Latin America and Africa. The changes could usher in higher shipping costs since some shipments will be going over a longer distance.

The refined fuels cap comes after the EU agreed late last year to set a price cap on Russian crude exports at $60 a barrel, which was the end result of a lengthy negotiation. That system has helped keep Russian oil on the market, but at a steep discount. Russia’s Urals grade crude, its top export stream, was $45.55 a barrel at the Baltic Sea port of Primorsk last week, according to data provided by Argus Media. The main Brent crude contract was at about $85 at the time.